What Happened
UK’s largest pay-TV broadcaster Sky is teaming up with ITV, another major UK broadcaster, and cable company Virgin Media to launch a new eSports TV channel dedicated to competitive gaming content 24/7. As part of the deal, ITV and Sky have acquired minority stakes in Ginx eSports TV, previously known as Ginx TV, a channel that was only available via Virgin Media’s cable packages and covered a broader range of gaming culture. The channel will launch on Sky as a 24-hour channel in the UK and Ireland on June 23, showcasing major eSports tournaments around the world in addition to its independent programming.
What Brands Need To Do
There is no denying that eSports has become a force to be reckoned with in today’s media landscape. Earlier this week, Twitch’s E3 livestreams scored 925K concurrent viewers, a number that any basic cable channel would love to hit. The rapid growth in eSports has drawn considerable attention from traditional media companies, with ESPN, Turner, and Yahoo all establishing their own dedicated portals and racing to capture the huge audience that eSports commands. Some early-adopting brands, such as Coca-Cola and Geico, have been sponsoring eSports events to reach its young, male-skewing audience. Therefore, brands should consider leveraging the massive reach of eSports events to reach their target audience via sponsorships and ads.
Source: Engadget