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Atlanta Bought an #Overwatch #Esports Team. Here’s Why You Should Care As A $GMBL investor $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 10:04 AM on Thursday, November 22nd, 2018

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Esports is one of the fastest growing sports in the world—and Atlanta is becoming its Southeast hub

By Joe Reisigl – November 15, 2018

The London Spitfire won the championship in Overwatch League’s first season.Photograph courtesy of Overwatch League

It was pure pandemonium in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. Confetti sprinkled through the sky, a roar ran through a crowd of thousands, and a team of six, the London Spitfire, all took their hands off their keyboards and mice to embrace each other in celebration of their victory while their opponents, the Philadelphia Fusion, hung their heads in defeat.

The venue was sold out, with more than 20,000 tickets sold, while live TV and online streams from Disney XD, ABC, Twitch.tv, and, most notably, ESPN, brought in an additional 860,000 viewers per minute from around the globe.

All of this just to watch 12 millennials compete professionally in a video game called Overwatch. With ESPN airing the game during primetime television (7 p.m. on a Friday), the July 27-28 event was huge for showcasing the rise of eSports.

Atlanta is going all-in on the phenomenon. The city will soon have its own Overwatch League team, the first eSports team to officially represent Atlanta. The team was purchased in July by consulting firm Province, Inc. and Atlanta-headquartered Cox Enterprises. The two companies created a joint venture, Atlanta Esports Ventures, which is assembling the team, named the Atlanta Reign.

The official logo of Atlanta’s Overwatch League team, Atlanta Reign.Photograph courtesy of Atlanta Reign

Cool, you might say, but who cares about watching other people play video games? While many are still unaware of what eSports is or don’t take it seriously, the industry is more than YouTube personalities and Twitch streamers making millions of dollars a year for screaming at monitors and guzzling energy drinks—it’s a force to be reckoned with.

With more than $500 million dollars coming in from advertising and sponsorships this year, a projected $1 billion revenue in 2019, and a staggering 38 percent year-to-year revenue growth, eSports is one of the fastest growing sports in the world. And there’s a reason why: businesses want to appeal to young people.

“[Esports] is outpacing any other sport—traditional or not—by a wide margin,” says Paul Hamilton, president and CEO of Atlanta Esports Ventures. “You’re seeing a huge number of eyes in a demographic that, traditionally, has been hard to reach.”

Paul Hamilton, president and CEO of Atlanta Esports Ventures, went to the Overwatch League Grand Finals at Barclays Center. “I’m a total sports nut, and the energy in that room was as loud and energized as any championship in any sport I’d ever been to,” he says.Photograph courtesy of Cox Enterprises

However, eSports has had problems in its players lacking professionalism, making sponsors hesitant to invest in a league with improper behavior, or one with a lack of structure that makes it difficult for for casual viewers to follow along with their favorite games. That’s where Overwatch League comes in.

By copying the format of professional sports leagues, Overwatch League is the first eSports league that seems to be doing everything right. It franchises teams by city—from Los Angeles to London to Seoul to Shanghai—which increases local interest by giving fans a home team to rally around. It organizes games similar to the NBA and NHL with a preseason, regular season, all-star break, and playoffs, creating a format that’s easy to comprehend. It keeps the production value of its brand and events top-notch, with codes of conduct for its players and coaches (which it is enforcing), energetic announcers, enthusiastic fans, and primetime TV spots. And the league gets sponsorships and offers large sums of money to winning teams—$3.5 million was the prize pool in 2018.

What’s most important: Overwatch League is turning eSports into a financially viable option for businesses to invest.

“It helps [Cox Enterprises] align with a new demographic,” says Dallas Clement, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Cox Enterprises. “Young folks who are enormously enthusiastic about eSports and gaming will possibly think of Cox as a place to come and work.”

Photograph courtesy of Overwatch League

“Within the next two to three years, Atlanta will probably be the hub of eSports,” says Mustafa Aijaz, chief operating officer of SoaR Gaming, a gaming organization that’s housed in metro Atlanta because of its booming eSports potential.

The number of gaming companies and opportunities in Atlanta is astounding. Thanks to the same entertainment tax credits that apply to the film industry, hundreds of gaming companies have moved to the metro Atlanta area, including video game developer Hi-Rez Studios; Scuf Gaming, which creates custom game controllers and accessories; and KontrolFreek, which creates thumb grips for gaming controllers. In 2016, Turner Broadcasting opened ELEAGUE, which broadcasts competitive eSports on TBS on Fridays at 11 p.m. In August, the Atlanta Hawks announced they would be purchasing a franchise named Hawks Talon Gaming Club to join the NBA’s eSports league, the NBA 2K League. Georgia State University has joined the National Association of Collegiate Esports and the Georgia Esports League, where it’s providing scholarships and assembling a team to play League of Legends and Smite competitions. SCAD posted a job position for an eSports head coach to supervise its Overwatch and League of Legends teams. Every day, gamers go to bars like Battle & Brew or Joystick Gamebar and every year they pack the Georgia World Congress Center for expo and competition DreamHack. Even Atlanta’s culture icons are getting into gaming: Lil Yachty played the world’s most popular game at the moment, Fortnite, with Ninja, the game’s most popular player, to create a video that garnered 11 million views on YouTube. And Waka Flocka has performed at DreamHack and competed in a FIFA 18 tournament for this summer’s MLS All-Star Game.

With the world’s largest airport in its back pocket and the perfect geographical location to be a center point for gamers in the Southeast, Aijaz thinks Atlanta is the third largest area for eSports, behind California and Texas.

Photograph courtesy of Overwatch League

“There are so many opportunities in Atlanta, it’s only going to get bigger and bigger,” he says. “Starting with this Overwatch League, I’m only waiting to see what’s to come.”

“Esports is just something that needs to be culturally accepted, and time will be the only thing that will allow that,” says Michael “Makz” Maknojia, SoaR’s founder and CEO. “Being on top of these things first rather than waiting is huge, and it’s good that Atlanta got into it now.”

Source: https://www.atlantamagazine.com/news-culture-articles/atlanta-bought-an-overwatch-esports-team-heres-why-you-should-care/

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#Dota 2 tournament showed me the future of #Esports $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 10:26 AM on Wednesday, November 21st, 2018

The three-day event laid out why competitive gaming is in the future of entertainment, though the contest wasn’t without its flaws.

Aloysius Low/CNET

Despite being a huge fan of esports, and Dota 2 in particular, I’ve never actually sat down at an esports competition from beginning to end. I’m a journalist. I usually have a job to do: Running about, doing interviews and meeting executives to hear them talk about the future of competitive gaming.

Dota 2 is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game that pits two teams of five against each other. The aim of the game is not to kill the other team’s heroes, of which there are 115 to pick from, all with different skill sets, but to destroy the enemy’s main building. And with each hero sporting their own unique abilities, the game can often be confusing and chaotic for a new viewer. But I digress. Where were we?

Oh yes. The future of esports. I’m always talking about the future of esports.

This time, however, I committed to the present. At this year’s first competitive Dota 2 Major tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, I found myself sitting down. Enjoying the experience. Instead of, you know, doing work.

Casters and analysts of the Dota 2 Major were celebrities in their own right.

Aloysius Low/CNETAnd it was then that I realised what I’ve been missing out the entire time I’ve been covering esports: The event itself. The exhilarating atmosphere that you’d only experience by sitting with a massive crowd and cheering for your favorite team. The present.

I’ve watched Dota 2 tournaments from home on my comfortable couch, with my two cats beside me, whooping as my team kicked butt. I found myself wondering if I had wasted time and money flying up from Singapore, unable to go through with my planned interviews.

Fans gather around the Dota 2 logo outside the arena for a photo.

Aloysius Low/CNETBut it was a lower-bracket game, a battle between two hot favorites, Evil Geniuses and Ninjas in Pyjamas, that had the crowd unified in excitement. Regional Southeast Asia teams had been eliminated, so with no local team to root for the crowd took the initiative and cheered everything. Every single play, every kill. They drowned the Axiata Arena in wild hoots of excitement. Watch the clip to hear just how hyped up the crowd was.

I sat up, fists pumping and screaming with the crowd as one team’s plays cancelled out the other team’s lead. Even though the in-game AI predicted a 97 percent win probability for NIP, things quickly turned around and EG took the lead.

Soon we were set for a third game. A toilet break and dinner beckoned, but no one wanted to give up their seats to the touch-and-go match. And go it went. NIP made yet another play, resetting the game. The crowd screamed as the tables were turned.

It ended in a loss for NIP in game three. The team was eliminated from the tournament but fans were satisfied, calling it the best series so far. And that was even before the grand finals were due to be played on the last day.

Malaysian player Yeik “MidOne” Nai Zheng (second from left) plays on Team Secret, which features an international lineup and is based in Europe.

Aloysius Low/CNETWith Russian team Virtus.pro beating Evil Geniuses in the semifinals, the crowd picked Team Secret by default to root for in the grand finals, as it featured star Malaysian player Yeik “MidOne” Nai Zheng. But Virtus.pro drew plenty of cheers for some amazing plays as well.

I was sitting next to a Malaysian blogger, who’d brought her husband along. She told me they had met through Dota, and that while she was rooting for Virtus.pro, her husband was cheering for Secret.

She laughed at her husband as Virtus.pro drew first blood, taking the first game. Her husband teased her as Secret took the lead, winning games two and three. With Virtus.pro winning game four in style, I jokingly told her the losing supporter had to sleep on the couch tonight — she told me he’d be sleeping there anyway.

Virtus.pro fought off Secret in style, clinching the top spot in a nail-biting match, and my newfound friend couldn’t be happier. And it’s memories like this that I found myself taking away from the event.

Russian team Virtus Pro celebrates on winning the first Dota 2 Major in this new Dota Pro Circuit season.

Aloysius Low/CNETIt was exactly the same atmosphere as you’d find at any other sporting event: Some crowd members glowed with delight, others were disappointed. People discussed the players’ mistakes as we streamed out of the arena. There’s been so much buzz about how esports is shaping up to be a multibillion dollar industry in the near future, but in terms of passion and excitement the future is already here, and we’re on track to watch it all unfold.

Fans of League of Legends, Overwatch and CS:GO’s competitive leagues will know exactly what I’m talking about, we’re already passionately devouring the content produced, lining up to meet players and talent, who have become stars and idols in their own right. We’ve developed our own memes and jokes, laughed or cried when our teams won or lost.

There’s no need to wait until esports becomes an official Olympic sport, or for the rest of the world to realise what it’s missing out on. Sure, games could be made more accessible — Dota 2 is complicated and somewhat hard to pick up — but I’d argue the same thing about cricket or football’s offside rule.

So take the plunge, head to one of the big events coming up in your area, and discover a whole new world.

Victory means $350,000 for the winning team, and an almost secure spot for the $25 million International next year.

Aloysius Low/CNETSource: https://www.cnet.com/news/dota-2-kuala-lumpur-major-virtus-pro-team-secret-evil-geniuses-nip/

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With investors knocking, #PlayVS opens the door to a $30M Series B #Esports $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 11:22 AM on Tuesday, November 20th, 2018

  • PlayVS, the company bringing esports infrastructure to high schools across the country, has today announced the close of a $30.5 million Series B financing.
  • The round was led by Elysian Park Ventures, the investment arm of the L.A. Dodgers, with participation from five existing investors including New Enterprise Associates, Science Inc., Crosscut Ventures, Coatue Management and WndrCo.

Jordan Crook

PlayVS, the company bringing esports infrastructure to high schools across the country, has today announced the close of a $30.5 million Series B financing. The round was led by Elysian Park Ventures, the investment arm of the L.A. Dodgers, with participation from five existing investors including New Enterprise Associates, Science Inc., Crosscut Ventures, Coatue Management and WndrCo.

New investors also joined in on the round, including Adidas (the company’s first esports investment), Samsung NEXT, Plexo Capital, as well as angel investors such as Sean “Diddy” Combs, David Drummond, DST Global partner Rahul Mehta, Michael Dubin and others.

It’s certainly worth noting that PlayVS raised a $15 million Series A just six short months ago. Founder and CEO Delane Parnell explained that this Series B was an opportunistic raise, as the company received a lot of inbound from investors to get a slice of the next round.

“This gives us much more stability and runway so that we can hire more senior employees and leadership,” said Parnell. “It also gives us a bit of a war chest to let the team go out and work their strategies.”

Alongside the raise, PlayVS also announced new game partnerships, bringing Rocket League and SMITE into the company’s portfolio. Rocket League and SMITE join League of Legends, which was added to the platform two months ago.

PlayVS launched early this year with a relatively novel approach to the esports world. Instead of focusing on the current esports space, PlayVS realized that there was a huge opportunity to bring infrastructure to the esports landscape in high school. As more and more esports careers are created through investment by colleges (via scholarships) and esports orgs, PlayVS gives students a place to show off their skills and get in front of recruiters.

The first step in the process was establishing a partnership between PlayVS and the NHFS, which is essentially the NCAA of high school sports. Through that partnership, PlayVS handles team schedules, district league schedules, coaching clinics, referees, and sets up an in-person live spectator event for the State Championship at the end of the year.

Right now, the company is in the midst of its Season Zero, testing out the platform with a small number of states — Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island — in preparation for the official Inaugural Season, which will begin in 2019. Today, PlayVS is adding Alabama (AHSAA), Mississippi (MISSHSAA), and parts of Texas (TCSAAL) to the program.

But the growth of the company is largely dependent on states and school districts, which is why PlayVS is announcing the launch of Club Leagues. Club Leagues is identical to the PlayVS sports league product, except there is no State Championship at the end. Still, students who do not yet have access to the official PlayVS sports league can create teams, join up, and play matches.

Eventually, Parnell says, the company will phase out Club Leagues as soon as official sport leagues are available to those players.

Source: https://techcrunch.com/2018/11/20/with-investors-knocking-playvs-opens-the-door-to-a-30m-series-b/

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#HyperX and Allied #Esports Announce HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 1:58 PM on Friday, November 16th, 2018
  • HyperX, the gaming division of Kingston Technology Company, Inc. and Allied Esports, a global esports entertainment company, today announced an exclusive naming rights partnership and multiyear agreement
  • Under which Allied Esports’ global flagship property, located at the Luxor Hotel & Casino, was newly named the HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas
  • The first dedicated esports venue on the Las Vegas Strip.

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif. — HyperX, the gaming division of Kingston Technology Company, Inc. and Allied Esports, a global esports entertainment company, today announced an exclusive naming rights partnership and multiyear agreement under which Allied Esports’ global flagship property, located at the Luxor Hotel & Casino, was newly named the HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas, the first dedicated esports venue on the Las Vegas Strip.

HyperX and Allied Esports announce HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas, naming rights partnership the first for a dedicated multipurpose esports arena in North America @hyperx

“HyperX and Allied Esports share a strategy centered on a ‘We’re All Gamers’ mindset, and with this first-of-its-kind partnership we can accelerate opportunities to engage fans and create influential content,” said Simon Temperley, Allied Esports Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer. “This dynamic relationship is a direct result of Allied customers’ excitement to use the best gaming equipment on the market and HyperX’s belief in our vision for content creation.”

The partnership is comprised of co-branded experiences and events, including unique opportunities with HyperX’s personalities, esports athletes and influencers; co-branded content and collateral in-venue, online and on social platforms; marketing, promotion and product activations; and a prominent retail presence in Las Vegas. The HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas branding will be integrated across all social media platforms starting today.

“HyperX’s commitment and dedication to all things esports has helped to propel the brand to become a favorite for professional and casual gamers. Attaining the naming rights for HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas allows us a great opportunity to grow our audience,” said Daniel Kelley, director of marketing, HyperX. “Allied Esports is a respected esports partner for us and we look forward to announcing more successes with them.”

The new deal expands on an already robust partnership between Allied Esports and HyperX. Earlier this year, HyperX became the Official Peripheral and Arena Partner of the Las Vegas arena, equipping gamers with HyperX headsets, keyboards, mice and mouse pads for esports tournaments, special events and daily play.

HyperX was also an Official Partner of Allied Esports’ North American mobile esports truck this summer with stops at various events, including the 2018 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles, VidCon 2018 in Anaheim, and Comic-Con 2018 in San Diego.

The new HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas opened in March 2018 and has quickly become a global destination for esports fans, players and streamers, and teams. The venue has staged some of the most popular esports entertainment events and productions of the year across a variety of game genres and titles, including Ninja Vegas ’18, starring streaming sensation Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, and recently announced two more major events in December: League of Legends All-Star 2018 (Dec. 6-8) and Capcom Cup 2018 (Dec. 14-16). The arena’s nightly tournaments, including Friday Frags and Saturday Night Speedway, have become the epicenter of Las Vegas’ growing competitive video gaming scene. HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas was recently named Venue of the Year at the 2018 Tempest Awards, a part of the Esports Business Summit.

As part of the partnership, HyperX will be sponsoring events at HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas. From January 9-12 during CES 2019, HyperX is planning a variety of social and marketing activities that will include the newly announced HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas. More information on the CES activations and other HyperX-sponsored events currently in the planning stages will be available closer to the event dates.

About HyperX
HyperX is the gaming division of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the world’s largest independent memory manufacturer, with the goal of providing gamers, PC builders, and power users with high-performance components. For 15 years, the HyperX mission has been to develop gaming products for gamers – high-speed memory, solid state drives, headsets, keyboards, mice, USB flash drives, and mouse pads – to the gaming community and beyond. The award-winning HyperX brand has carved its name atop the leaderboard by consistently delivering products that deliver superior comfort, aesthetics, performance, and reliability. HyperX gear is the choice of pro gamers, tech enthusiasts, and overclockers worldwide because it meets the most stringent product specifications and is built with best-in-class components. HyperX has shipped over 60 million memory modules and 5 million gaming headsets worldwide.

Join the global #HyperXFamily at facebook.com/hyperxcommunity, and learn how HyperX products can enhance your console experience and boost performance for both you and your PC at hyperxgaming.com. Whatever your skill level, whatever genres you play, we embrace all gaming enthusiasts everywhere with our core belief — We’re All Gamers.

Website: http://www.hyperxgaming.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HyperX
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hyperx/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hyperxcommunity
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/kingstonhyperx

About Allied Esports
Allied Esports is a premier esports entertainment company with a global network of dedicated esports properties and content production facilities. Its mission is to connect players, streamers and fans via integrated arenas and mobile esports trucks around the world that serve as both gaming battlegrounds and every day content generation hubs. Allied Esports is a subsidiary of Ourgame International (SEHK:899), owner of WPT Enterprises, Inc., the operator of The World Poker Tour.

The Allied Esports Property Network currently spans ten properties in the top three esports markets across the globe: North America’s HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas, Esports Arena Orange County, Esports Arena Oakland and Esports Truck “Big Meta”; Europe’s ELC Gaming, Esports Truck “Big Betty” and Esports Studio in Hamburg, Germany; and China’s Lianmeng Dianjing in Beijing, Lianmeng Dianjing SEG Arena in Shenzhen, Lianmeng Dianjing Tianjin Arena and Lianmeng Dianjing Gui’an Arena.

For more information, visit AlliedEsports.gg and follow @AlliedEsports on social media.

Editor’s Note: For additional information or executive interviews, please contact Mark Tekunoff, Kingston Technology Company, Inc. 17600 Newhope Street, Fountain Valley, CA USA 92708, 714-438-2791(Voice). Press images can be found in Kingston’s press room here.

Kingston, the Kingston logo, HyperX and the HyperX logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of Kingston Technology Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. All registered trademarks and trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Source: https://business.financialpost.com/pmn/press-releases-pmn/business-wire-news-releases-pmn/hyperx-and-allied-esports-announce-hyperx-esports-arena-las-vegas

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#Esports And Casual Games Race To The #Blockchain $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 11:43 AM on Thursday, November 15th, 2018

  • We’re by no means oracles at Crypto Briefing, but the future usage of cryptocurrency and blockchain in the video game industry looks as inevitable as the marriage of internet and gaming
  • It wasn’t that long ago that most video games were played offline, with online modes only sometimes being haphazardly added on.
  • These days, online gaming rules the roost.
  • Even more specifically, mobile gaming is predicted by Newzoo’s 2018 Global Games Market Report to account for over half of all gaming revenue.

By Brian Penny

We’re by no means oracles at Crypto Briefing, but the future usage of cryptocurrency and blockchain in the video game industry looks as inevitable as the marriage of internet and gaming.

It wasn’t that long ago that most video games were played offline, with online modes only sometimes being haphazardly added on. These days, online gaming rules the roost. Even more specifically, mobile gaming is predicted by Newzoo’s 2018 Global Games Market Report to account for over half of all gaming revenue.

Meanwhile, Newzoo’s 2018 Global eSports Market Report predicts approximately $900 million in revenues generated by eSports. The viewership for professional gaming is around 380 million people watching over 46 billion minutes of Twitch streams every month alone.

But will it be the blockchain or cryptocurrency that’s accepted by the video game industry first, and will it be casual games or esports that powers it?

The answer lies in the business model powering the gaming industry’s revenue.

Crypto Meets Esports

Cryptocurrencies are already making headway into Esports. The United Masters League has announced its backing for the first professional gaming tournament with a crypto pot. Sponsored by Unikrn, a global gambling and Esports brand backed by Mark Cuban, players in the ChallengeMe tournament will vie for prizes totalling $290,000, to be paid out in the company’s native cryptocurrency, Unikrn Gold.

The ChallengeMe tournament will last three months, and be fought between fourteen European teams in matches of Counterstrike:Global Offensive, Unikrn revealed in a press release.

With over 400 hours of gameplay and broadcasts in eight languages, the tournament indicates a serious shift towards virtual currencies and assets within the space of online gaming. Nor is it a one-off event; Unikrn had already begun a long-term pivot towards digital assets when it attained licensing for cryptocurrency as well as fiat betting last month.

Mobile Games Made Developers Depend on Microtransactions

While “hardcore” gamers ignored mobile gaming in its early days, revenues by mobile developers like Rovio, Supercell, and King made legacy console and PC developers take notice. It wasn’t long before Electronic Arts, Square Enix, and longtime holdout Nintendo were developing mobile games.

These mobile upstarts proved a freemium business model that was unheard of outside of South Korea’s online gaming market. Games and apps on mobile devices are developed and released in sprints, using an Agile development method. This allows them to be released to the consumer market and start generating revenue earlier in the development cycle.

Mobile games are often given away for free.

Over 80 percent of games today are free-to-play with in-app purchases, called microtransactions. When executed correctly these freemium models are very profitable – Candy Crush Saga and Clash of Clans (the two highest-grossing mobile games of all time) are pulling in approximately $1 million a day.

Anyone who’s played a video game on either mobile, PC, or console (which I have to assume from the statistics is everyone) knows the familiar format of earning gems or coins to purchase items within a game. Using those currencies to make real-world purchases would be a big deal to gamers everywhere.

This is what gaming platforms like GameCredits and LootForge are trying to do, but developers and publishers like Blizzard want to keep it in their own ecosystem with proprietary digital currencies like WoW Token.

It’s unlikely anyone will ever make any real money playing video games any time soon, aside from the professionals. But there’s still hope for video games and blockchain.

Blockchain Can Bring Games to the Next Level

The blockchain is about more than just cryptocurrencies. It also provides an immutable digital ledger that can be decentralized or distributed. Using blockchain technology, tracking video game scores, stats, and assets in everything from first-person shooters like “Call of Duty” and “Fortnite” to MMOs like “Minecraft” and “Fallout 76” can be done across all platforms, whether mobile, PC, or console.

This can be a big win for developers, who often have to deal with the servers of Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo’s consoles, along with Valve’s Steam PC marketplace and Google and Apple’s mobile markets.

Cross-play isn’t made easier when the platform owners resist. Sony made waves in 2018 for hesitating to allow its PS4 players to play with gamers on other consoles. It finally succumbed to the bad press and released a press announcement in September, revealing that it’s considering cross-play on more of its games.

And tracking on the digital ledger isn’t all – thanks to Ethereum’s ERC-721 non-fungible token standard and the ERC-1155 reference implementation, digital collectibles can be created, tracked, and traded on the blockchain.

Games like “Fortnite” and “World of Warcraft” have a variety of items of varying rarity and value.

Roll chances on bosses determine drop rates of items, and this can all be calculated via blockchain for a much more enhanced loot distribution system. It’s not just currency – clothing, weapons, and other collectible items can be found in games.

Online black markets for resources in some games have existed as long as the games themselves. Platforms like Wax and OpenSea are already looking into these systems, and Decentraland built a blockchain specifically for VR using the concept of nonfungible tokenized smart contracts.

But let’s not forget the distribution system of the games themselves. Piracy is responsible for an estimated $8.1 billion in annual losses to the video game industry. Most games these days are sold through digital keys, and thefts of those keys have ravaged everyone from Valve’s Steam marketplace (a 2016 hack resulted in the loss of 33 million game codes) to developers like Gun Media (limited edition Friday the 13th Kickstarter codes were stolen in February 2018).

And anyone buying a game on the secondary market often loses out on most of the valuable online functionality.

Blockchain-based tracking of these codes can help combat piracy. In fact, the public/private key transaction system used in blockchain can secure game codes better, while the digital ledger helps trace who uses them.

Whether blockchain or cryptocurrency penetrates gaming first isn’t clear, but both technologies are poised gain acceptance from gamers before anyone else. Miners and gamers are forever conjoined in the battle for graphics cards with powerful GPUs, and it’s time everyone starts working together.

Source: https://cryptobriefing.com/esports-games-race-blockchain/

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#Esports monetization is set to evolve in new, amazing ways $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 5:37 PM on Tuesday, November 13th, 2018
  • The esports industry relies on the legacy sports broadcast model for monetization, but there are new, advanced interactive technologies on the scene bringing amazing opportunities for the financial juggernaut that esports is.
VB Staff November 13, 2018 7:50 AM
“The people who wanted to make sure that esports happened looked at the business models of
traditional sports and said, let’s make that happen for us,” says Jonathan Singer, industry strategist
at Akamai.

That means advertising, sponsorship, merchandising, ticket sales, media rights, teams and leagues, formal coaching and mentoring, building up some stars, and having big events. What was a little different was putting it all online.

“That could not have made more sense,” Singer says. “It’s exactly what you needed to do. You took the prior business model and applied it. Check all the boxes and make sure you do it correctly. But if you’re looking at the future of esports, what are the new opportunities?”

The way esports is structured, a lot of it seems very similar to traditional sports, he adds. There are two or four guys (usually guys) with suits and headsets, and they’re calling the match, and sometimes you’ve got a commercial break. But within that paradigm there are ways to innovate, and there are ways to bust out. There are three key innovations that can take esports into the future, Singer says: relevance, value, and choice.

Relevance means that if you’re going to be advertising-based, the advertising needs to get better. It needs to get more targeted. How can you get viewers to consume your ads? What are they going to get in return?

“There’s room for innovation there, because this is almost a purely online audience,” he explains. “This is so different than what people think when they think about a sports audience. Obviously, a lot of people know a lot about digital advertising, but they need to take that learning, see where that industry is going, and apply it to esports.”

The next piece, he says, is value, particularly value to the viewers. It could look like a simple exchange: You give me an ad and I get to watch my content. But what does that experience look like and how does it interrupt my experience?

Right now companies are leaping in to take advantage of the opportunities this offers. Veracity is offering a blockchain system in which viewers make decisions around how many ads they’re willing to watch or listen to, in exchange for a certain amount of match viewing time. Advertisers put money into the blockchain system, and in the end, pay broadcasters solely based on viewership.

The last area ripe for innovation is the sport itself, or the difference in the way that audiences think about games versus the way they think about traditional sports.

“I hate to use the example of the Hunger Games, because it’s about sending children off to their deaths, which is terrible, but in that model, these viewers in the Capitol were able to engage with what they were watching by banding together, collecting some money, sending little air drops out for people,” Singer says. “Is that kind of engagement something that we can see in esports? How do the game-makers make that “fair” or reasonable? Is that something that audiences want? Is that something the players would tolerate?”

There’s a tremendous amount of opportunity around viewer interactivity for esports, in ways that would never fly in traditional sports.

“No one’s going to throw an extra basketball onto the court,” Singer says. “Or if you do, you’ll get kicked out of the stadium.”

Also part of the interactive piece is the opportunity to play with viewer perspective, as in how do viewers consume their matches. Do you follow one player? Where are the cameras, and why are they there? Companies are working hard now on innovating around how viewers watch and interact with the match, and how to translate that into engagement and new monetization opportunities.

In the end, there’s one very specific line of thought, Singer says, which is that esports doesn’t need traditional television, because it already has established itself. Esports is making money, and there are people making money in it. It’s respected by the people who watch it and enjoy it, and viewer numbers are skyrocketing.

“So don’t get me wrong — all of the traditional stuff is working,” he says. “The question is, where does it go from here?”

To learn more about how to merge the traditional esports model with the new, where the profit is coming from, and even more innovations coming down the pike, don’t miss this VB Live event!

Source: https://venturebeat.com/2018/11/13/esports-monetization-is-set-to-evolve-in-new-amazing-ways-vb-live/

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Goldman Sachs $GS #Esports moving from wild west to revenue boom $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 1:15 PM on Monday, November 12th, 2018
  • Goldman Sachs has become the latest financial powerhouse to give the future of esports a glowing report.
  • Following PwC’s Sports Survey 2018, US investment bank Goldman Sachs has published its own research on esports, concluding that, by 2022, the esports audience will “reach a similar size to the NFL today”.
  • GS reports that increasing levels of professionalism — not least organisational structure — is playing a significant role in growing esports revenues.

Esports audience figures compared with major US sports, according to Goldman SachsThe report reads: “In the early years of esports, there was little organisation or infrastructure and, as a result, the massive audience of esports did not translate into meaningful revenue streams for players, team owners, etc.

“But in 2017, Riot Games created the North American and EU League of Legends leagues, while in January of 2018, Blizzard launched the Overwatch League.

We expect total esports monetisation will reach $3bn by 2022

“We believe these leagues created the requisite infrastructure that will allow esports to finally start to close the monetisation gap relative to other established sports leagues. In 2017, we estimate esports generated $655m in annual revenue, including 38% from sponsorships, 14% from media rights, and 9% from ticket revenue.

8Goldman Sachs’ estimates for esports revenue growth to 2022“But by 2022, we expect media rights to reach 40% of total esports revenue — comparable to the average of the four major Western sports leagues today — as massive audiences and associated revenue for established online video platforms like Twitch, YouTube, Douyu, and Huya will be able to support a growing pool of media rights fees paid to top publishers for their content.

“As media rights and sponsorship continue to grow, along with the formalisation of pro sports leagues, we expect total esports monetisation will reach $3bn by 2022.”

GS says its research indicates that the growing popularity of “survival-based games” (battle royale) such as Fortnite and PUBG, will help drive esports into the mainstream.

We believe the esports audience should continue to outpace the growth of traditional leagues

The report said: “Due to the growing popularity of survival-based games Fortnite and PUBG, we believe esports viewership is moving more into the mainstream, which should support a 14% audience growth CAGR for the next five years.

“Recently, Epic games announced that it would set aside $100m in prize pool for the first year of Fortnite esports tournaments, nearly the size of the entire esports prize pool in 2017. With growing incentives for esports players, and by extension more interest from the casual observer, we believe the esports audience should continue to outpace the growth of traditional leagues.”

Going mobile

The GS report also features a Q&A with Andy Miller, co-founder of NRG org. In the interview, Miller shares his thoughts on franchising, growth in China and mobile esports.

Asked if he thought mobile and console esports would become as popular as PC-based games, he replied: “I do think it will be big. I have a mobile background myself — NRG entered the founding franchise into the Clash Royale League.

“Mobile is more here in gaming than you think, because what are the biggest games people are playing right now? Fortnite, PUBG? They’re on mobile. Clash [of Clans]? Mobile. Hearthstone and games like that have been around for a while.

“So the question is — will they translate into good esports? I think that’s probably more a function of the game than the fact that it’s on mobile, so we’ll see. There will definitely be breakout games. I think the touch screens are capable now — there is a lack of latency, so I think the opportunity is definitely there.”

Source: https://blog.luckbox.com/goldman-sachs-esports-moving-from-wild-west-to-revenue-boom-e9a551372336

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Professional Sports Franchises Turn To #Esports For The Next Billion-Dollar Market Opportunity $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 2:14 PM on Friday, November 9th, 2018

  • 2018 marked the inaugural year of the NBA’s gaming league, known as the NBA 2K League. This league is composed of 17 competitive gaming teams that are essentially owned and operated by the same organizations that pay your favorite dunker or three-point shooter
  • But is there a real business opportunity here? There are a few data points that favor their efforts. For instance, it is estimated that nearly 1.6 million people play NBA 2K every day, at an average of 90 minutes per day, according to the league. Since consumer attention equals revenue opportunities, this may be a smart move for the league.

Mark Hall Contributor

The last four decades brought us generations of young athletic children whose sole aspiration was to become the nextMichael Jordan or Tom Brady of their sport. Since most people don’t make it to pros, these children grew up to become lifelong viewers and fans of the game and sports teams they love.

Midway through the 1990s, the growth of the video game industry enabled sports fans to live vicariously through the avatar of their favorite athlete or character. Fast forward to today, the broader industry, known as esports, has grown into nearly a billion-dollar market.

Leagues like the National Basketball Association (NBA) and others have taken notice.

In an effort to seize on this monumental shift, the NBA is jumping on board by creating new pathways and meaning to the term ‘professional athlete.’ People who would otherwise have no shot at shaking the commissioners hand while being drafted by the NBA are now doing just that.

2018 marked the inaugural year of the NBA’s gaming league, known as the NBA 2K League. This league is composed of 17 competitive gaming teams that are essentially owned and operated by the same organizations that pay your favorite dunker or three-point shooter.

Each team’s roster will mirror that of the actual game, with five players each covering a different position and a sixth player being in the rotation. What’s unique about this league is that players don’t play avatar versions of real NBA players, but rather digital versions of themselves with increased talent.

But is there a real business opportunity here? There are a few data points that favor their efforts. For instance, it is estimated that nearly 1.6 million people play NBA 2K every day, at an average of 90 minutes per day, according to the league. Since consumer attention equals revenue opportunities, this may be a smart move for the league.

The NBA isn’t the only league making moves like this. In August, the National Football League (NFL) announced a partnership with gaming company Electronic Arts and TV network ESPN to host a competitive league for their famed Madden game series.

True success of these league initiatives won’t be evident for years to come. However, the sheer announcement of such platforms will shape a new generation of aspiring professional athletes who can potentially achieve competitive domination like that of Lebron James, without having to break a sweat.

Mark Hall is a sales leader in a large technology company, contributing to Forbes on the topics of business, culture and leadership. He has been featured in The Huffington Post, Business Insider, among others. All opinions are solely his own and are not reflective of anyone …

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/mitsubishiheavyindustries/2018/11/02/the-worlds-most-dominant-manufacturing-powerhouse-is-about-to-get-a-lot-greener/#65e744fa5ddd

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Promoter to pour $50 million into new #Esports competitions #LOL $GMBL $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 4:15 PM on Wednesday, November 7th, 2018

  • It’s no secret that Asia is the fastest-growing esports market. And now, One Championship wants a slice of the pie.
  • The Singapore-based martial arts promoter will organize an effort to pump up to $50 million into the launch of the One eSports championship series next year, One Championship said Wednesday.
  • The tournament and related events will be part of a joint venture with Japanese ad agency Dentsu that also includes partners Razer, the gaming hardware maker, and Singtel, the Singapore telecom.

One Championship’s efforts in Asia will culminate in a new tournament.

It’s no secret that Asia is the fastest-growing esports market. And now, One Championship wants a slice of the pie.

The Singapore-based martial arts promoter will organize an effort to pump up to $50 million into the launch of the One eSports championship series next year, One Championship said Wednesday. The tournament and related events will be part of a joint venture with Japanese ad agency Dentsu that also includes partners Razer, the gaming hardware maker, and Singtel, the Singapore telecom.

The announcement comes amid rapid growth in video game competitions, especially in Asia. Global esports revenue is expected to top $900 million this year, according to market researcher Newzoo. Esports debuted as a demonstration sport at this year’s Asian Games in Indonesia and is set to become a medal event at the 2022 Asian Games in China.

One eSports will feature “blockbuster” game titles and will host multiple esports events next year, according to One Championship. Specific details such as game titles, the number of events and their locations aren’t clear yet, but the esports competitions are expected to sync with One Championship’s already scheduled martial arts events. The esports matches will be broadcast live.

“We see a natural crossover between martial arts and gaming fans in Asia and an opportunity to bring them together under Asia’s home of millennial live sports,” Chatri Sityodtong, chief executive of One Championship, said in the announcement.

In addition to live event broadcasts, One eSports plans to stream content such as documentaries, reality shows and video blogs across its broadcast platforms in 138 countries.

Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/one-championship-pumps-in-50m-to-bring-the-fight-online-in-asia/

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The world’s #Esports industry is growing at a massive rate, and Hong Kong is ready to catch up $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $TCEHF $Game.ca $EPY.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 11:12 AM on Tuesday, November 6th, 2018

  • If you haven’t noticed by now, the eSports industry is on an exciting growth trajectory that won’t be slowing down anytime soon.
  • Less and less people on the outside looking in are seeing eSports as a niche interest or trend, but a legitimate, lucrative and very, very entertaining sport that could easily eclipse traditional sports given the time.

Chris Singh

If you haven’t noticed by now, the eSports industry is on an exciting growth trajectory that won’t be slowing down anytime soon. Less and less people on the outside looking in are seeing eSports as a niche interest or trend, but a legitimate, lucrative and very, very entertaining sport that could easily eclipse traditional sports given the time. The proliferation of eSports events around the world is certainly helping drive that growth, with even official tourism boards now recognising the potential for eSports to be a major draw for international and domestic visitors. Case in point: the Hong Kong e-Sports and Music Festival.

The three-day event, which was held towards the end of August for it’s second year, took place in Hall 3 of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and represented a major recognition of the industry by the city of Hong Kong. In fact, it was organised by Hong Kong Tourism Board, with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Limited on board as the event’s major sponsor. As such, the prize pools were also remarkably large for such a young event of this size.

The tense CS:GO Grand Finals saw a record-breaking HK$2 million total prize pool, while the weekend’s highlight, the Hong Kong PUBG World Invitational, saw a pool of over HK$1 million – the largest amount ever in a local PUBG competition.

Throughout the weekend more than 26 eSports teams from around the world, and over 110 players, competed in the tournaments which were complemented by live music and an “Experience Zone” which filled an entire hall with eSports products, playable games, a large amount of VR titles, and a mini-stage hosting various other acts like a CLP x eSports Academy, KOL battles, and performances by local musicians.

With Hong Kong’s local eSports scene now boosted thanks to events like this, we thought it best to catch up with a big-name local to discuss competitive gaming, it’s growth, and what five things are required for someone to make it in this growing industry. That local just happened to be Hong Kong’s first League of Legends world champion, Toyz of professional eSports organization G-Rex and Emperor esports Stars.

Competitive gaming has come so far but there is still a long way to go for eSports, in terms of its popularity and recognition. Where has the major growth been in 2018 and what do you feel is driving this growth?

One of the significant growth factors in 2018 is definitely the legitimization of eSports as one of the demonstration sports in Asian Games, officially drawing the line between games and eSports. Asian Games attracts world-class players from different sports categories and audience from worldwide. Being one of the demonstration sports in Asian Games goes beyond a simple recognition but also drives public attentions towards eSports. Notably, eSports exclusively possessed over 60% of the viewership among all the sports in Asian Games; it shows the trend of future competitive entertainment and the growing mass public’s interest in eSports. From my perspective, this milestone is a recognition of youngsters’ interest and the penetration of eSports compared to traditional sports.

What is Hong Kong’s eSports scene like now? Is there any difference between the scene in Hong Kong and other Asian cities?

I think HK’s eSports is lagging behind compared to regions nearby. Even though we see HK officials are making more investment in eSports including EMF and a budget of $100M HKD for local eSports development; HK eSports has not yet been well recognized globally. One of the ways to truly accelerate HK’s eSports growth is to build an international eSports brand to compete in international matches and win international titles to acquire recognition on a global scale, and shape a better career path for eSports players as well as eSports related workers in HK.

What are five things you feel are necessary for someone to get into, and succeed in, the world of eSports?

Passion, persistence, talent, diligence, and high team spirit

How do you define your teams play style and what aspects of the play style remain consistent across games?

Our League of Legends team is more on defensive style with a late-game strategy. G-rex is strong in team fight and we keep this style as one of our signature.

Prize pools are getting bigger, like EMF in August, and there are now more new eSports events happening around the world. What do you feel will be the major trends in eSports in 2019? What would you like to see happen for the industry?

I think we can see more eSports stars in the market. We now see more eSports related entertainment supplementary to the traditional entertainment industry, and it’s great to see to see more and more big corporates join the market and help build a better and more supportive ecosystem for eSports in the future.

For more details on Hong Kong’s annual eSports & Music Festival head to their official website HERE.

Source: http://launch.theaureview.com/games/the-worlds-esports-industry-is-growing-at-a-massive-rate-and-hong-kong-is-ready-to-catch-up/

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