A new esports platform and social networking app made by Filipinos for Filipinos will be launched in October. Called Kalaro, this platform aims to serve the needs of over 27 million gamers in the Philippines as the esports industry continues its tremendous growth in Southeast Asia.

Kalaro Software Architect Jun D. Lasco told Digital Life Asia that this central hub for esports entertainment and gaming tournaments seeks to address the pain points of esports athletes and brands.

Bringing Filipino gamers together

“One of the main pain points is the fragmented esports industry, especially in Southeast Asia and similarly situated countries. This fragmentation and lack of order makes it extremely difficult to strengthen the industry’s full capacity. Some stakeholders consequently get the short end of the deal. For instance, player compensation and incentives, or brands not benefiting from their marketing investment,” Lasco said.

The platform will serve as a virtual community for esports players, coaches, teams, influencers, team owners, leagues, and esports fans. With Kalaro, members will be able to meet other gamers, initiate conversations to discuss the latest trends in gaming, get updates about the upcoming events or tournaments, watch their favorite shoutcasters in live streams, and interact with them in real time.

Kalaro will also provide its members a complete facility to launch and manage tournaments inside the app. Integration with various social media accounts outside Kalaro will be seamless. This will result in a fully integrated setup, promotion, publishing of game results, and overall management of competitions.

Helping esports stakeholders

All these directly benefit the various esports stakeholders. Players will hone their skills faster, streamers will gain access to a larger audience, influencers will get central access to all esports events and personalities, shoutcasters will be able to entertain more gamers through their live video streaming and commentaries, leagues will get broader exposure, teams will gain more followers, and brands will be more integrated for sponsorships and advertisements.

“Kalaro, therefore, will create order in this tournament-centric industry. Order since corporate brands can now measure the impact of their advertising money and sponsorships. Players now have the facility to tap corporate brands inside Kalaro. Tournament organizers can now seamlessly plan their events and tap corporate brands without leaving the platform. Esports players and fans can enjoy the social media features of the esports dedicated platform called Kalaro plus its integration with the more generic social networks,” Lasco said.

What players need

So how do you set up a Kalaro account? Interested gamers can sign up using their Facebook, Twitch, Google, mobile number, or email address. If you want to become a Premium member, you can pay a small annual fee to gain exclusive access to some of the platform’s unique features. Users will be given a free Kalaro e-wallet to buy Kalaro Gems. These gems can be used internally to gain access to exclusive events and unique features.

The platform will also have Kalaro Points that will be loyalty incentives for highly active members. They can later on be redeemed to get gaming and esports merchandise.

Kalaro has also created a facility for corporate brands to set up online storefronts. The platform will have a dedicated panel that will allow companies to advertise, sponsor, and sell gaming rigs. They will sell the branded gadgets at maximum discounts. Additionally, only limited edition esports items can be sold in the marketplace. With this, brands will be closer to this captive market segment.

Kalaro also guarantees the privacy of information of its users and their activities.

Developing Kalaro

Lasco is also the founder of The-AsiaGroup.com Inc. and Pnex Intl Corporation. He is also the executive director of the Philippine National Esports League (PNEL). This is a grassroots amateur esports development organization. Its vision is “(t)o be the catalyst and pioneer in the development of the Philippine esports industry leading towards the creation of the Philippine e-sports national team for the 2024 Olympics.”

“My initial involvement with the esports industry was when I was invited and approached by the founders of the Philippine National Esports League (PNEL) and the Esports World Federation (ESWF) in early 2019,” Lasco said.

“I studied the industry and how I can apply my tech experience and expertise for this specific industry. I designed a five-element digital platform and it became the foundation of what we are now seeing. Along the way, up to today, there is continuous enhancement until we can officially release the Kalaro app by the end of September or beginning of October. It’s been a year and our product roadmap has a lot of world-class features in store,” he said.

Lasco said PNEL will use Kalaro for its tournaments and stakeholder management.

“Internationally, another supporter of Kalaro app is the ESWF, which is staging the eWorld Cup based in Hong Kong through YEAH. FIM Asia Digital Moto Championship is another tournament, and there are many others in the pipeline,” he said.

So, gamers, are you ready to play?