THE PLATFORM OF CHOICE & THE POPULARITY OF LIVE EVENTS
Sticking true to its digital roots, livestreaming is the dominant form of esports viewership with platforms like Twitch and YouTube leading the esports industry in its advancement towards mainstream modernized entertainment. According to some industry experts, getting TV attention is critical to making esports mainstream, but with recent broadcasting deals with ESPN and TBS, plus livestreaming platforms like Twitch, esports has already found a way onto nearly every device in America.
Lucky for advertisers, the Twitch platform makes it easy for brands to get in on the action and advertise.
TWITCH
Launched in 2011 as Justin.TV, this livestreaming platform quickly gained traction and was bought by Amazon in 2014 for $970 million. Now, Twitch is the platform of choice for live streaming, gamers, and esports fans to come together and watch the action unfold at tournaments, esports league games, and during casual play. With 15+ million daily active users and users averaging 100+ minutes on the platform, brands will be hard-pressed to find another audience that matches Twitch’s level of engagement.
One of the best aspects of Twitch is the real-time interaction between broadcasters (streamers) and their viewers. With Twitch Chat and Discord (messaging app), fans engage in a live discussion with one another during the stream, building a strong sense of community around games, livestreamers, and the larger fan base. This sense of community can be used to a brand’s advantage because if advertisers appeal to the community, they can easily be the talk of the town across Twitch and social users conversing about gaming on other platforms.
As we spoke to earlier, viewers can support streamers directly through Twitch and with that, so can brands. From Subscriptions (imagine if Netflix allowed you to just subscribe to one TV show), Donations (fans can donate money to their favorite streamers), and Cheering (works the same as donations but is an animated currency in Twitch that’s tied to monetary value), viewers are already accustomed to advertisements through “sponsored messages” encouraging them to participate and subscribe to the streamer’s channel.
Advertising on Twitch goes hand-in-hand with brands wanting to enter the esports arena. Since livestreamed content is the most accessible way to consume what Twitch calls ‘modernized entertainment’ (esports), advertising on Twitch is a sure way to connect with every fan across devices and regions. Luckily, Twitch has various opportunities for brands to get in the game.
Ways to Integrate Your Brand on Twitch:
• Media Opportunities via digital ad placements
- Cross Screen Video - OOT Devices
- HPTO & First Impression Takeovers
- Display Media - Sure Stream - guarantees visibility & cuts through Ad Blockers
- Watch & Earn Engagement Ad Unit
- Twitch + Audience Extension Products
• Experiential Opportunities through Event Activations
• Esports Team & League sponsorships
- Take over an event with on-the-ground brand experiences coupled with digital ad placements for the fans at home.
• Premium content through custom and curated experiences
- Custom digital tournaments
- “Twitch Presents” Series
Just because games are played and watched online doesn’t mean brands should rule out live events as the opportunities to be apart of one of the industry’s biggest moments at a live event are tenfold.
LIVE EVENTS
From gaming industry conferences that see close to 50,000 individuals to esports tournaments and publisher events, live events are the pinnacle of the esports experience. So much so that the 2016 League of Legends World Championship sold out the 15,000-seat Los Angeles’ Staples Center in just 12 minutes and the same event the following year generated $5.5 million in ticket revenues and was the most watched event on Twitch in 2017 totaling 49.5 million hours.
Furthermore, the Newzoo Annual Global Esports Report estimates consumer spending on tickets and merchandise will total $96 million while $116 million is to be invested by the game publishers to partner with white-label organizers.
Live gaming events take many forms such as championship events, hybrid events like Ninja Vegas 18, esports league games, and publisher/platform conferences.
The Big Gaming Events
Like any sporting event or global moment, esports event organizers and game publishers allow brands to sponsor, partner, and advertise to fans at the event or online. This list is in no way inclusive of all the major events, but to brands just entering the market, these events take the lead in empowering fans from all over the world to fly in, stream live, and buy into brands who take center stage alongside the best esports athletes.
The League of Legends World Championship is the most watched esports event of the year. More than 100 million viewers watched this past year’s League of Legends Worlds, totaling more than 1.2 billion hours of videos watched. Widely praised for the high-quality plays and spectacular ceremonial performances, League of Legends is world-renowned for the dramatic ceremonies and gameplay.
BlizzCon at Blizzard Arena LA in Burbank, CA features the StarCraft II World Championship Series Global Finals, the Heroes of the Storm Global Championship Finals, and the World of Warcraft Arena World Championship Finals.
The first-ever Overwatch League Finals is held this summer at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The competition will determine the champions of the world’s first major global, city-based esports league and if all goes well, will alter the course of esports history and validate esports’ ability to create city-based esports teams.
TwitchCon is hosted by Twitch and serves as a celebration for Twitch broadcasters and the gaming community. The conference calls for fans and streamers to watch, learn, and play together.
Because of the chances (and history) of drawing large crowds, most championship events are held in arenas and event centers, but for the more boutique experiences, esports arenas act as a way to better serve the esports community in a more intimate setting. With game nights, community events, and watch parties, these venues are great for brands interested in providing a more experiential brand interaction.
eSports Arena is a company who’s latched onto America’s gaming passion by creating esports arenas in Las Vegas, Orange County and Oakland, California. With their media and consulting services, eSports Arena knows the ins and outs of esports events and partner with the likes of NBC, Red Bull, Microsoft, and General Mills to provide a quality branded experience for esports fans across the nation.
Because of its unique ability to attract and engage a young, loyal and diverse audience, it’s easy to see why companies not directly involved (non-endemic brands) in the esports industry are finding ways to “cement themselves in the space.”
“WHAT GAMERS CARE ABOUT IS ALTRUISM, AND THEY WANT TO SEE BRANDS DOING SOMETHING THAT BENEFITS THE SPACE, NOT JUST THE BRAND.”
— NATHAN LINDBERG
(TWITCH)
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