Published on: Oct 22, 2015 @ 12:48
Activision has announced its plans to create a competitive eSports Division, dedicated to competitive gaming, according to the company’s latest press release.
Activision Blizzard Tap Ex-ESPN & MLG Execs to Run New eSports Division
This is happening.
The signs are there for anyone to read, and the frequency and size of the related deals keeps increasing. Today, Activision Blizzard, one the biggest entertainment forces on the planet, issued the kind of announcement that is hard for those that follow the industry to ignore.
From the new division’s Chairman Steve Bornstein, “Last year, Activision Blizzard created entertainment that was viewed and played by over 150 million people for more than 13 billion hours. I believe esports will rival the biggest traditional sports leagues in terms of future opportunities, and between advertising, ticket sales, licensing, sponsorships and merchandising, there are tremendous growth areas for this nascent industry. I’m excited to help Activision Blizzard further its leadership position in esports.”
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New Fireteam
Activision has brought in Steve Bornstein, former CEO of NFL network and ESPN, and Mike Sepso, former MLG co-founder and President. The men will serve as Chairman and Senior Vice President, respectively.
Congrats to @msepso on the move to Activision! I'm excited for the future of @CallofDuty esports even more so now!
— Goldenboy (@GoldenboyFTW) October 22, 2015
According to Bornstein,
“Activision Blizzard created entertainment that was viewed and played by over 150 million people for more than 13 billion hours. I believe esports will rival the biggest traditional sports leagues in terms of future opportunities…”
Additional information can be expected in 2016. Destiny now has over 2 billion hours of gameplay since launch and over 20 million Guardians. Destiny’s Crucible experience may not be ready for this right away though, even if it is one of the most popular games on Twitch. Call of Duty will undoubtedly see the spotlight in a competitive setting.
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Billions
According to Newzoo, a video game market research and analytics firm, the video game industry as a whole generated over $81.5 billion in revenue in 2014, the United States with over 20 billion. The industry is predicted to draw in $90 billion in 2015.
Many games can draw in huge crowds, but outside of passionate fans, not a ton of attention is given to the events.
So, what does this mean for Destiny? The Crucible is host to many underground tournaments, with players from all over, organizing their own sets of rules and regulations. These tournaments let the Crucible elite show what the game is capable of, but only after struggling to get matchmade with one another.
Destiny’s lack of custom games is a big deterrent to a serious competitive scene rising from the Crucible. Is this announcement enough to convince Bungie to bring in custom games? Could they be coming with ‘Destiny 2’? Only time will tell.
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PvE Tournaments
If PvP isn’t your thing, did you know that Red Bull is sponsoring PvE speed runs?
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PvP Legends
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