22.03.2021 Ankara
The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu participated in the 13th Future Power Entrepreneurs (g3) Forum held in cooperation with TOBB, Habitat and GEN Turkey via video conference.
Addressing
the importance of entrepreneurship and the gaming sector, Hisarcıklıoğlu
explained that the pandemic brings problems as well as new opportunities such
as e-commerce. Hisarcıklıoğlu said that the most important condition for
economic existence in the global arena in this century is an entrepreneurial
country and entrepreneurship. Emphasizing the importance of the gaming
industry, Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that Turkey's first unicorn came out of
the field of gaming.
Noting
that the technological transformation which will last for decades during the
pandemic process took place in 1 year, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Digitalization and
e-commerce have come to the fore all over the world. And a new generation of
entrepreneurs has accomplished it. Look, I read an interesting article in the
foreign press recently. Accordingly, the share of digital media in advertising
51%. I mean, both visually and in writing, it's past all the traditional media.
It's very important how the ad cake is divided. Because it's also a mirror of
consumer behavior. Consumers are increasingly shifting to online and will
continue to do.”
Emphasizing
that producers and entrepreneurs should be there, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “You
must therefore first bring your business online. You should be digital, not
only as e-commerce, but also from customer relationships to advertising and
marketing. Annual data have not yet been released, but the volume of e-commerce
in our country increased by 64% in the first 6 months of last year. So it's
grown almost four times faster than traditional trade. In the past, the
proportion of e-commerce in general commerce was 8%. When we look at the world,
all fast-growing companies choose the e-commerce route. After Covid-19, the
trend towards this area continues unabated. e-Commerce is becoming a habit for
the consumer who starts shopping online. In that case, we have to digitize products
and services. That is why, as TOBB, we aim to digitize the private sector and
develop the next generation of entrepreneurship.”
Stating
that as TOBB, they wish to establish an ecosystem in Turkey that not only
monitors initiatives abroad, but also hosts initiatives open to the world, Hisarcıklıoğlu
said, “We dream of a Turkey which raises individuals who are part of the
entrepreneurship ecosystem, supports these entrepreneurs and brings its
competitiveness to the global with an innovative culture. Because in this
century, we see that the most important condition of existence in the global
arena is to be an entrepreneurial and entrepreneurial country. Acting with this
vision, we continue online activities for the next generation of
entrepreneurship fields until the end of the year. Our Venture Capital Council
has the largest venture capital in our country. Under the leadership of Mr. Göktekin,
our Council President, we bring our entrepreneurs together.”
Hisarcıklıoğlu
stated that entrepreneurs who want to contribute to the game world with their
innovative ideas have been informed through entrepreneurial councils about
their ability to benefit from state support and incentives, and said that they
have expressed the problems of the gaming sector through our Software Sector
Council and the Creative Industries Sector Council.
Explaining
that the topic of play is becoming more and more important, Hisarcıklıoğlu
said, “We consider the emergence of our country's first unicorn as a great
success story of our young entrepreneurs and we are proud of them. We find it
very accurate and appropriate for the G3 forum to set this issue as the main
agenda.”
Hisarcıklıoğlu
reminded that the size of the mobile gaming sector market reached 175 billion
dollars, “Mobile games ranked first among the most downloaded applications in
the world. In Turkey's entrepreneurship ecosystem, the sector with the newest
initiatives was the sector which received the most investment, the gaming
sector. Many of us not only learn about remote shopping, distance education and
remote conference with corona virus, but also became aware of remote sports, e-sports
matches. In fact, e-sports is a kind of entrepreneurship and has hundreds of
millions of users and followers. It is renewing Olympic agenda to boost the
falling ratings of the Olympics and to keep the interest of millennials and
Z-generations alive at the Games.
In
this context, e-sports competitions are also considered to be included in the
games. There are e-sports teams in 50 schools in the United States and they are
preparing for the 2024 Paris Olympics. We have also established the E-sports
Federation under the Ministry of Sports in 2018. But there's something we need
to be careful about here. Why do you think that is? Turkey's first Unicorn came
out of the gaming platform area? Of course, the state does not operate in this
area at all with regulations or negotiations. What I see is that when the state
doesn't overshadow it, the entrepreneur is comfortable, and in this land, unicorns
can emerge. And, you know, the public administration is always looking at
things in terms of public finances. Therefore, I wish all our entrepreneurs to
continue their work away from the bureaucratic mindset of the public
administration. Our Women and Young Entrepreneurs Councils will always be with
you, join them. Work closely with our Venture Capital Council, namely Mr. Göktekin,
and cooperate more. Let's attract more investment in all these innovative
sectors, such as gaming, software, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and
create new entrepreneurs and success stories from here.”
- “Turkey is among the most
important actors in the mobile gaming market”
Gülden
Yılmaz, President of the Future Power Entrepreneurs Forum, noted that many new
initiatives have made a rapid entrance into the business world during the pandemic.
Yılmaz
stated that one of the areas where significant growth has been recorded during
this period is the digital gaming sector, “It is one of the areas where the
digital gaming sector is of the most interest to investors. Turkey is one of
the most important actors in the mobile gaming market. I am confident that this
potential will grow with new initiatives.”
- “Investment opportunities will
increase as the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Turkey develops”
Habitat
Association President Sezai Hazır stated that investment opportunities will
increase as the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Turkey develops, “We welcome the
developments in the Turkish gaming sector and reiterate our faith and support
for entrepreneurs in this sector.”
After
the opening speeches, the panels titled “The Power of Entrepreneurship” and
“Gaming Sector and Investment World” were held. The interactive roundtables
traditionally held within the scope of the G3 Forum will be held in digital
environments this time. Within this framework, entrepreneur and entrepreneur
candidates will meet with the leading names of the business world in digital rooms.