The unit will be run by Gavin Ho, a former product marketing manager with Microsoft responsible for launching Xbox Live in Hong Kong.
Regional media spend by the video games industry is forecast to outstrip film, sport and magazines within five years, according to a recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers, making it the second fastest growing medium in the region after the web.
Marketing interest in the sector, however, remains relatively low.
"Marketers haven't really begun to infiltrate and leverage the medium," commented P J MacGregor, director and vice-president at Play's headquarters in Chicago. "We're aiming to change this."
Starcom Play will offer product placement and brand tie-ups, though "these tactics only represent a fraction of what we think this channel is capable of," according to MacGregor, citing advertiser generated game enhancements and sponsorship of gaming tournaments as examples.
Starcom is initially targeting the main gaming centres of Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Hong Kong, tagging China as a market with future potential.
Starcom enters mobile segment with Play launch
Media agency Starcom has set its sights on the dynamic Asian video games market by opening an arm of its specialist gaming unit, Play, in Hong Kong.