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Singtel, "gaming is definitely something" it wants to explore as a business. It's neither mainstream nor niche, but it's rapidly catching on among the younger crowd.

"We have 700 million subscribers in our family of six companies. In fact, within our group, some 200 million plus are gamers and game enthusiasts," he said.

Singtel estimates that the compound annual growth rate for the gaming industry in South and South-east Asia alone will be 19.2 per cent from 2017 to 2021, with China, Japan and South Korea generating revenue of US$27.5 billion, US$12.5 billion and US$4.2 billion respectively.

For the same period, it estimates the monthly average revenue per user (ARPU) is set to grow 11.1 per cent in South and South-east Asia.

To demonstrate its commitment to e-sports, where gamers pit their skills against each other in Superbowl-style competitions, Singtel has poured US$300,000 into the prize pool for its previously-announced PVP eSports Championship, a multi-title and regional league held in Singapore from Oct 5 to Oct 7.
It's part of Singtel's aim to foster a "vibrant e-sports ecosystem and community", together with subsidiary Optus and regional associates Airtel, AIS, Globe and Telkomsel.

For the competition, Singtel has partnered heavyweights such as Razer, Blizzard and Garena, and other homegrown players such as computer chair maker Secretlab and custom computer builder Aftershock.