3 Hong Kong, the mobile division of Hutchison Telecommunications Hong Kong (HTHKH), has signed an agreement with GASH Point, an Asian digital entertainment payment platform, in its latest push to tap the growing gaming market.
As part of the agreement, the pair will launch co-branded game points cards, ranging between HK$10 ($1.28) and HK$1,500. Users can use the cards to access 3,000 mobile and PC games, as well as digital content. Gamers could also be offered privileges such as special edition gaming equipment.
The operator said customers can buy GASH game points and receive bonus game points amounting to not less than 5% of a purchase via 3 Hong Kong’s direct carrier billing service. Such transactions will be charged directly to a 3 Hong Kong customer’s mobile bill, thereby providing total peace of mind when making a purchase.
Gamers holding a GASH Point account can access digital entertainment content via the Gash app. Such items include games such as Clash of Kings, MonsterStrike and the Xifeizuan Palace Game. The app also allows access to Japanese digital content via the DMM.com audio-visual gaming platform and the DLsite.com online shop dedicated to otaku, Japan’s anime and manga fandom scene.
Kenny Koo, 3 Hong Kong’s director of roaming and service development, said the co-branded cards are expected to be introduced in July at the earliest.
Koo said 3 Hong Kong is the first operator in the city to seal such a deal with Gash, and the company expects the collaboration with GASH Point will help boost mobile data usage and consumption of value added services.
The collaboration with GASH Point is the company’s latest effort to build an integrated gaming platform for gamers. In May, 3 HK and Razer, a lifestyle brand for gamers, formed a strategic partnership to collaborate on a number of areas including co-branding, mobile devices and plans, and virtual currency distribution, as well as open RazerStore in Hong Kong.
“We aim to become the telecoms operator of choice among gamers. The route to this goal involves collaboration with world-class partners, so we can offer the hottest gaming products and services, while delivering the latest eSports information,” the executive said.
GASH COO Simon Lu said the collaboration with 3 Hong Kong provides local users with a convenient payment method and is “an important milestone” in its penetration of the Asian market.
“This [partnership] will allow us to extend our operational scale, enhance the GASH application user experience, establish an online-to-offline (O2O) scenario and revamp GASH’s website in order to improve loyalty among members. What’s more, we will offer specially-tailored services, while developing more payment options and making an even greater diversity of digital entertainment content available to satisfy user demand and boost our membership numbers,” he said.
Lu said there is a lot of potential in gaming market in Asia Pacific, which generated $46.6 billion of revenues in 2016, up 10.7% from the year before.
GASH currently has presence in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Korea, with over 10 million registered users across these markets and an annual transaction of $300 million.
Lu said Hong Kong currently contributes about 15% of the company’s total revenue and gamers in Hong Kong spend two and three times more than those in Taiwan.
In addition to gaming, Lu said GASH and 3 Hong Kong will also explore in other areas such as co-organizing e-sports tournaments and digital entertainment content.