Team China compete during the League of Legends Quarterfinal match of e-sports at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, Sept 27, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

SHENZHEN - The number of electronic sports (e-sports) users in China reached 488 million in 2023, up 0.1 percent compared to the previous year, according to an industry report released in south China's Shenzhen on Wednesday.

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The actual revenue of the e-sports industry reached 26.35 billion yuan (around $3.71 billion) in 2023, down 1.31 percent year-on-year, as reported by the Electronic Sports Committee of China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association.

In the breakdown of revenue sources, e-sports content live streaming claimed the largest share at 80.87%, while event revenue and club revenue accounted for 8.59% and 6.42%, respectively

In the breakdown of revenue sources, e-sports content live streaming claimed the largest share at 80.87 percent, while event revenue and club revenue accounted for 8.59 percent and 6.42 percent, respectively.

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Among the major e-sports game categories, shooting games took the lead with 28 percent, followed by multiplayer online tactical competitive games at 15.9 percent and sports-based competitive games at 12.2 percent.

In 2023, the number of non-exhibition e-sports events featuring provincial-level and professional players saw a year-on-year increase, totaling 127 events, among which Shanghai, Beijing and Hangzhou hosted the most offline e-sports events.

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The report also indicates that China's e-sports industry has continued to expand globally this year, especially in Southeast Asia. Some events have become popular local e-sports competitions in countries like Indonesia and the Philippines.