Evaluation of the Impact of Guangzhou's Game and E-sports Support Policies on the Performance Flexibility of Hong Kong-listed Game Companies

• Time and Name: On December 25, 2025, the “Eighteen Measures for Supporting the Development of the Game and E-sports Industry in Guangzhou” (hereinafter referred to as “Guangzhou Eighteen Measures”) was released, marking Guangzhou’s first special policy for game and e-sports [1].
• Annual Cap per Entity: The total annual financial support funds obtained by a single enterprise under this policy shall not exceed 10 million yuan [1].
• Partial Subsidy Dimensions and Caps:
  • R&D Direction: Encourage in-depth integration of AI/VR/metaverse and other technologies with games. High-quality technology projects can receive a one-time support reward of “up to 3 million yuan” [1]; support original high-quality R&D, and provide a one-time pre-subsidy of “up to 2 million yuan” based on investment and pre-orders [1].
  • Operation Direction: Excellent products online for 1-3 years can receive a one-time post-subsidy of “up to 5 million yuan” based on revenue [1].
  • Event Direction: Introduce or cultivate top international and domestic events, with a single event eligible for a subsidy of “up to 5 million yuan”; e-sports event alliances can receive a subsidy of “up to 2 million yuan” based on annual investment [1].
• Policy Features: “Practical Investment, Wide Coverage, Flexible Mechanism” (financial support, industrial chain coverage, combination of pre- and post-support), aiming to make Guangzhou one of the world’s most influential cities in game and e-sports by 2030 [1].

• Market Cap: Approximately HK$5.48 trillion (Company Overview)
• Current Stock Price: HK$603.00; Intraday +0.17%
• 52-Week Price Range: HK$364.80 — HK$683.00
• Year-to-Date Performance (Jan 1 to Dec 24, 2025): Approximately +44.6%

• Market Cap: Approximately HK$678.4 billion (Company Overview)
• Current Stock Price: HK$213.20; Intraday +0.19%
• 52-Week Price Range: HK$131.90 — HK$248.00
• Year-to-Date Performance (Jan 1 to Dec 24, 2025): Approximately +56.88%

Note: As of now, the accessible company overview and real-time quote data do not include specific financial indicators such as net profit, ROE, or net profit margin. Therefore, no unverified quantitative deductions (e.g., precise percentages of “net profit share/revenue share/market cap share”) are made.

• Scale Perspective: Compared with the company’s size, the annual cap of 10 million yuan per enterprise is relatively small. Under the assumption of 100% full兑现, the marginal impact on the company’s overall revenue and profit is “minimal” (no specific percentage calculation is provided).
• Potential Gains for Leaders from Policy Features:
  • R&D and Operation Incentives: If the company has R&D teams or game product operation entities in Guangzhou, it may receive support in technology projects, original R&D, and post-operation subsidies, which helps reduce specific project costs and improve the marginal return of R&D and high-quality investment.
  • Events and Ecosystem: Guangzhou’s investment in e-sports venues/events/park supporting facilities helps enhance regional e-sports event vitality and brand exposure, bringing potential positive externalities (traffic, brand, local operation convenience) to enterprises with large e-sports IPs (e.g., “Honor of Kings”, “Peace Elite”, and NetEase’s related event systems).
  • Combination of Pre- and Post-Support: The superposition of multiple lines such as 2 million yuan pre-R&D subsidy + up to 5 million yuan post-operation subsidy + event subsidy improves the flexibility and operability of enterprise application and implementation [1].

• Version Number Rhythm and Industry Prosperity: In 2025, 1,771 national game version numbers were issued, hitting a 7-year high, an increase of about 20% year-on-year, and the industry continued to recover [2].
• Guangdong Game Industry Scale: Relevant reports show that Guangdong’s game industry revenue in 2025 was approximately 283.6 billion yuan, accounting for about 80.85% of the country’s total, with prominent investment and financing activity and significant regional ecological advantages [3].
• Other Local Policies (Citing Cases from Public Information, No Specific Numerical Comparison of Quota Caps):
  • Guangzhou Tianhe District: Supports original game launch and R&D investment (reports mention that R&D investment exceeding 50 million yuan can receive “subsidy-to-investment” support at a ratio of 1%-3%, with a maximum annual support of 8 million yuan per enterprise; original games launched can receive up to 100,000 yuan per game, with a maximum annual cumulative support of 1 million yuan per enterprise) [4].
  • Shanghai: Released “Ten Measures for Shanghai Games”, providing multi-dimensional support such as compliance services and international cooperation, emphasizing internationalization and factor agglomeration [3].
  • Shenzhen/Chengdu/Wuhan, etc.: Many places have launched game and e-sports support policies, focusing on events, parks, talents, and overseas services [3][5].

Note: Considering the differences in terms, application thresholds,兑现节奏, and implementation rules of policies in different cities, this article only presents the clause features in public reports and does not conduct unverified quota ranking or cross-city “strength” comparison.

• Domestic Market: In 2025, China’s game market revenue was approximately 350.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 7.7%; the user scale was about 683 million, a year-on-year increase of about 1.4%, with mobile games and mini-program games performing well [6].
• Overseas: Self-developed game overseas revenue was approximately 20.46 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of about 10.2%, exceeding 100 billion yuan for 6 consecutive years, with mobile games accounting for over 90% of overseas revenue [6]; reports mention that Tencent’s overseas game revenue in Q3 2025 was about 20.8 billion yuan, accounting for about one-third of its total game revenue [7].
• Technology and Gameplay Integration: AI, multi-end interoperability, diversified gameplay themes, and global user acquisition and promotion have become important directions for quality improvement and efficiency enhancement [6][7].

• If the company’s game entity/event entity/R&D team is located in Guangzhou, it may receive subsidies in R&D, operation, and events under the “Guangzhou Eighteen Measures”; under the assumption of 100% full兑现, the marginal contribution to the company’s overall performance is “minimal”, but it has an improvement effect on the cost structure of specific projects/studio.

• R&D and Content Innovation: Clauses encouraging the integration of AI/VR/metaverse and other technologies with games help guide resources toward high-quality and technology-driven directions [1].
• E-sports Events and Venues: Event subsidies and supporting facilities for venue/park construction help increase regional e-sports event vitality and viewing experience, which is beneficial to the brand and operation penetration of enterprises with large e-sports IPs in South China.
• Overseas and Regional Collaboration: Guangzhou has established supporting facilities such as game overseas service centers, which, together with talent and market integration in the Greater Bay Area, provide environmental support for enterprises’ overseas and local operations in South China [3][7].

• Policy Signal: The special policy releases the local government’s supportive attitude toward the game and e-sports industry. Combined with the national version number expansion and high-base growth of industry revenue, it helps repair and boost the medium- and long-term expectations of the game sector [1][2][6].
• Industry Differentiation: Policies guide “high-quality + technology + overseas”, which is beneficial to leading enterprises with R&D, event, and global capabilities; small and medium-sized enterprises need to meet thresholds such as revenue/investment/influence in application and兑现, and the actual benefit程度 will vary.

-兑现 and Threshold: Subsidies require review/recognition and meet conditions such as revenue/operation duration/influence, and the actual approved amount is uncertain; preparation of application materials, project cycle, and audit acceptance will affect the rhythm of fund arrival.

• Policy Sustainability: Local policies may change clauses or adjust strength due to fiscal and industrial goal adjustments.
• Industry Regulation and Overseas Compliance: Regulatory requirements such as minor protection, overseas compliance, and cross-border data continue to evolve, which may affect some products and market strategies (e.g., anti-addiction, privacy, and content compliance) [5].
• Competition and Cost: The industry is highly competitive, and user acquisition costs and R&D costs are rising, putting pressure on profit margins and profit rhythm.

• Policy Significance: The Guangzhou Eighteen Measures marks the systematic support of the local government for the game and e-sports industry, with practical investment, wide coverage, and flexible mechanisms, forming multi-dimensional benefits for game and e-sports enterprises布局 in Guangzhou [1].
• Performance Flexibility (Qualitative): Under the assumption of 100% full兑现, the overall performance impact on leading enterprises with huge sizes such as Tencent and NetEase is “minimal”; but there are marginal improvements and strategic layout value in specific project cost optimization, event and local operation, and ecosystem collaboration.
• Industry Outlook: National version number expansion, record-high industry revenue, overseas and technology upgrades jointly drive the industry toward a high-quality growth stage; the superposition of regional policies will strengthen the R&D and operation advantages of leading enterprises in the Greater Bay Area, while promoting the industry toward high-quality and technology [1][2][3][6][7].

• [0] Jinling API Data (Company Overview, Real-time Quotes, Daily Price Range, Annual Performance)
• [1] Sina Finance — “Here’s the Dry Goods! Guangzhou Issues First Special Policy to Support Game and E-sports Industry Development”
  https://finance.sina.com.cn/roll/2025-12-26/doc-inhecrxf2570531.shtml
• [2] Game Daily — “Just Now, December Game Version Numbers Issued, 147 Products Approved!”
  https://www.163.com/dy/article/KHL54JAH052682V2.html
• [3] Game陀螺 — “283.6 Billion! Guangdong Game Industry Annual Report Released: Mini Games Soared 40%, Overseas Output Value Exceeded 46.4 Billion”
  https://www.youxituoluo.com/534108.html
• [4] 同花顺财经/Related Reports — “Guangzhou Game Industry New Policy, Maximum Subsidy of 8 Million Yuan; 4399’s Overseas New Game Earned Nearly 30 Million Yuan in 3 Weeks; A South China Big Factory Chairman Denied the ‘Hundred Sons’ Rumor｜Weekly Report”
  https://news.qq.com/rain/a/20251220A01Y0I00
• [5] GameNews — “Policy” Column Summary
  https://gamenewstc.com/nr.jsp?_reqArgs={“args”%3A{“groupId”%3A4%2C"jpt"%3A4}%2C"type"%3A32}
• [6] First Financial — “Breaking Records Again! China’s Game Revenue Exceeded 350 Billion Yuan in 2025, Driving Related Industry Economy Exceeding Trillion Yuan”
  https://m.yicai.com/news/102966436.html
• [7] 21st Century Business Herald — “From ‘Genshin Impact’ to ‘Black Myth: Wukong’, the Advanced Path of China’s Game Overseas”
  https://finance.eastmoney.com/a/202512243600621918.html

(Note: This article does not constitute any investment advice. Specific investment decisions need to be carefully evaluated in combination with company announcements, policy details, and market conditions.)