HyperX, the gaming division of Fountain Valley-based Kingston Technology Co., has introduced a new keyboard with Arabic characters as the company expects plenty of growth opportunities in the Middle East.
“We’re seeing such good growth rates in our overall business in the Middle East,” said Dan Kelley, HyperX director of corporate marketing. The company’s products include gaming headsets, microphones, mouse units and eyewear in addition to keyboards for PC gaming.
Kelley expects the top countries for the keyboard sales of this type to be Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.
“We do expect a good amount of business from Egypt and Jordan as well,” Kelley told the Business Journal on Sept. 18.
He said the company has been ramping up investment in the Middle East while acknowledging it is a “difficult region to sell into.”
“We’re seeing more and more emphasis and focus from the bigger gaming publishers, developers and companies like ours that make gaming equipment.”
Arabic Website
The cost for the new keyboard is relatively modest. According to the company, the manufacturer’s suggested retail price for the Alloy Origins Core keyboard in Kuwait is 38.90 dinars, or the equivalent of $127 apiece.
More is on the way for the region.
“We’re close to launching a complete Arabic version of our website,” Kelley said, with a target at the end of next month. HyperX is doing “its best to service the region” with Middle East growth around 40% to 60% annually though the company does not release specific figures.
Kingston is Orange County’s largest private company with 2019 revenue of $12.8 billion.
He says of the Middle East: “There’s a good amount of upside to the demand.”
Kelley says that as equipment makers, HyperX is “agnostic” about the content of the games themselves.
But he notes there are limits for the region, including the levels of violence allowed.
HyperX gaming keyboards currently support 16 different languages.
“HyperX is doing quite well,” Kelley said, benefiting from more people staying at home during the coronavirus pandemic. Kingston employees have been working from home since mid-March.
Gaming Epicenter
Meanwhile, the Orange County area continues to live up to its reputation as an epicenter of online gaming.
• Irvine-based Esportz Network’s “The Gamer Hour” show featuring esports broadcaster Chris Plunkett will debut next month.
The program will be filmed in the Reuters NYC, Times Square studio, featuring interviews with top celebrities from traditional sports, musicians, comedians, and movie stars who are gaming enthusiasts. The 30-minute weekly show appearing on 32 distribution channels seeks to appeal to dedicated and casual gamers.
Other show highlights include gameplay, information on new games, and expert reviews.
• Blizzard Entertainment in Irvine will release “World of Warcraft: Shadowlands,” the eighth expansion of its ultra-popular online role-playing game on Oct. 26.
• Gaming products maker Razer, with dual headquarters in Irvine and Singapore, says it will lobby for inclusion of Esports in next year’s Southeast Asian Games.
