Mobile playbour: Mobile esports and gaming labor in Indonesia

This article examines the merging of mobile media and gaming cultures through mobile esports (electronic sports). Exploring the accessibility and challenges associated with mobile esports labor practices offers a critical look at Indonesia's informal economy today. This economy operates at the intersection of mobile networked creativity and “playbour"—the blend of play and work—in a fragile employment environment. The article introduces the concept of mobile playbour to analyze specific practices in Indonesia, emphasizing the creative, social, and emotional labor of players that drives the monetization of esports. It ultimately highlights digital and community-building opportunities, the structural instability of mobile game labor, and its broader implications for creativity and monetization in mobile media and game studies.