eSports
Esports Sets $3 million Payday Record as Sponsors and Big Brands Are Given the “Keys to the Kingdom” of Big Data
As a 16-year-old was awarded a $3-million-dollar cash prize for winning a Fortnite tournament, the largest payout ever for a single player in an esports tournament, an Atlanta startup unlocked its war chest of advanced patented technology promising to boost esports for big money sponsors and brands by breaking the data barrier within live events. Move over content, data is the new king.
Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf, from Pennsylvania, is the 16-year-old who everyone is talking about after he was crowned king of Fortnite and took home the $3-million-dollar grand prize. The tournament, which was held in New York’s Arthur Ashe tennis stadium, had a total payout for all levels and ranks of $30 million dollars. But keeping to this trend of future sizable multi-million-dollar payouts may be difficult for other esports tournaments unless they can attract the deep pockets of corporate advertisers and sponsors. Massive exposure to this intriguing world of gamers is one way to secure large advertising spends; however, access to big data from this same group may be the keys to the kingdom.
Indeed, consultancy firm Accenture’s “Big Success with Big Data” study found that 79 percent of enterprise executives say that companies who don’t embrace big data will lose market strength and may face extinction. By now, it is a well-known fact that data is king when it comes to successful performance in the digital era.
Sponsors, advertisers, and brands in this technologically advanced age of millennials and their mobile devices have come to expect teams, leagues, and venues to deliver on the big data promise. Big data refers to extremely large data sets that may be analyzed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations, especially relating to human behavior and interactions. One company has both chartered and taken the lead in the industry on delivering on this promise, not only within esports but all LIVE events: VNU (pronounced Venue). VNU has pioneered a new engagement technology platform called “engageLIVE.”
Pushing the data boundary is what engageLIVE is about. Last year the startup completed a proof of concept with Turner Sports during its ELEAGUE “Streetfighter V Championship” tournament. In a world where most teams and leagues are very happy with 5 to 10% participation in their apps during live events, VNU crushed those numbers, activating over 87% of the live audience in a moment’s notice (with zero pre-promotion) and holding their attention, with 90% of those activated participating during the entire engageLIVE session.
Betting big on data and live events is CEO and cofounder of VNU, Joe Carter. Carter is a former CNN host who worked at the cable news station from 2009 to 2016. He was a familiar face on HLN’s Morning Express with Robin Meade and various CNN news shows from early morning to late day. Since leaving the cable network, Carter has been laser-focused on maximizing engagement to drive actionable data during event downtime: “Our engageLIVE product combines the best features of demographic targeting and behavioral targeting into a new engagement platform which instantly enables any live venue to gamify and monetize the downtime of any live event while turning fans into advocates of the event sponsors and brands.”
The engageLIVE platform comes from Internet patent pioneer Jovan Hutton Pulitzer and his patent/development incubator FLIP.Ventures. A number of Pulitzer’s technology innovations and patents (for instance, how you scan and connect with QR codes and bar codes on your mobile devices) are already in use on more than 11 billion mobile devices globally. This scan-and-connect software, which comes pre-installed on most current devices, allows Carter’s company to activate the engageLIVE feature set in seconds.
“We spent several years meeting and brainstorming with executives in the NFL, MLB, NBA, and other live events finding out what everyone really needs to engage their fans and also what would make it useful for sponsors and brands,” Carter states. “We are now rolling out what the teams, leagues, venues, brands, and sponsors told us they wanted to engage live audience members. We deeply researched the needs of all and then created the only technology product which could deliver on it.”
VNU’s results with Turner’s ELEAGUE were exceptional, but Carter set out to push the engagement boundaries to show his technology company could succeed against higher stakes. VNU partnered with Esports Stadium Arlington to engage a crowd of thousands over a 12-hour period during a championship tournament.
Breaking ground and being bold is what Esports Stadium Arlington is known for. The 10-million-dollar, 100,000-square-foot facility located in Arlington, TX, is North America’s largest dedicated esports facility. The building is a joint venture of the city of Arlington and Esports Venues LLC, an arm of Infinite Esports, which is owned by Texas Rangers co-owner/COO Neil Leibmen. VNU and its platform engageLIVE activated and engaged the crowd during every downtime moment on championship Sunday at a popular tournament called Low Tier City 7.
Not only is Esports Stadium Arlington known as America’s largest dedicated esports facility, but it now has bragging rights by having launched the first fully engaged & interactive esports event. Low Tier City 7 fans were interacting with the engageLIVE platform during every game break and game changes.
“EngageLIVE was a fantastic way to enhance the audience experience at Low Tier City in an authentic way. The active audience participation that engageLIVE generated using sponsor-driven questions during giveaways brings beneficial exposure to partners, which provided valuable insights. There are bright opportunities with engageLIVE for events to amplify experiential components for fans while simultaneously deriving valuable and informative ownable moments for stakeholders,” said Jonathon Oudthone, President of Esports Stadium Arlington.
Esports is hot, engagement is hot, and Carter’s company is hot. “Esports continues to show its huge potential, but it must prove it has full brand and sponsorship potential, and that it has the ability to deliver more than the traditional live events have in the past. The more is big data. We knew that if we could get fans to engage on a moment’s notice and share views, votes, values, and vision with the brands and sponsors, then the advertising and sponsorship dollars needed for the esports business to explode will be soon to follow. We’ve accomplished what we set out to develop and we’re now looking forward to the new ideas, data, offers, and brand messaging which springs forth going forward,” closes Carter.
Source: VNU, LLC
eSports
North Star Network acquires Um Dois Esportes
North Star Network are delighted to announce the acquisition of umdoisesportes.com.br, which becomes the latest addition to NSN’s global sports media portfolio.
Born from the GRPCOM merger of the editorial teams of Gazeta Do Povo and Tribuna do Paraná in 2020, Um Dois Esportes provides in-depth sports coverage and analysis for the Brazilian state of Paraná and beyond.
North Star Network co-founder Julien Josset said: “Thank you to the team at GRPCOM for their faith in us to take the brand forward. Um Dois Esportes is an established and renowned site in Paraná State, and we’re excited about the challenge of developing this asset.”
“We’re happy to maintain the collaboration with the existing editorial team, and look forward to working with them, bringing our unique NSN approach, to take UDE forward.” NSN’s signing of Um Dois Esportes is the media house’s fourth acquisition of 2024, following the recent deals to purchase UK-based SportsMole and MrFixitsTips, as well as Chilean site AlAireLibre, which was announced in March.
The latest addition to the North Star media portfolio joins existing assets including Top Mercato, Afrik-Foot, and Vringe. The Paris-based company already oversees a significant Brazilian operation, delivering over 6 million sessions per month, from the likes of Trivela, Premier League Brasil and Lakers Brasil.
NSN will retain Curitiba-based journalists from the Um Dois Esportes legacy team to maintain the asset’s unique tone and popular coverage of the Paraná sports scene across site and social.
“We were surprised by the interest, and initially had no intention of selling Um Dois, but as the conversations evolved, we realised this was a serious group with good intentions,” said GRPCOM Director Rafael Mello. “We were very happy to see our project being valued by a large international group and going global, demonstrating the quality of the content we produced.”
“We’re also proud that North Star inherited our journalists, who are truly responsible for the success of the product we offer readers every day.”
eSports
GIANTX Promotes LVP Superliga Toplaner Th3Antonio to the League of Legends EMEA Championship Roster
Today, GIANTX is excited to announce an update to its LEC competitive roster. Antonio”Th3Antonio” Espinosa Bejarano is recognised as one of the most successful LVP Superliga players in the history of GIANTX, and he has now reached a pivotal moment in his career to compete in the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC).
The LEC is the most important League of Legends competition in Europe and one of the most relevant in the international esports scene. The Barcelona-born ‘toplaner’ will be part of the lineup kicking off the LEC Summer split season in Berlin, which starts in June. As the community quotes; ‘Th3LEC’ is finally a reality.
Commenting on his new role, Th3Antonio said:
“This is the dream I’ve been working towards since I entered esports. I always wanted to compete at the highest level to face the best, and finally, I have this opportunity. I never stopped striving, and thanks to that and the work we’ve done together with all my teammates, we’ve achieved great things in Spain, but the LEC has always been my ultimate goal. Going to the LEC with my lifelong club, GIANTX, is a double dream. Everyone knows what GIANTX means to me”.
Sports Director at GIANTX, David Alonso, added:
“Th3Antonio deserves this opportunity, both in recognition of the level he’s at and all the work he has put in over the past few years. We are convinced of this decision and that he will give everything to succeed in the LEC. He has always been characterised by sacrificing himself for others, and lately, he has taken a step forward by leading in crucial moments, a clear sign of his maturity as a player”.
Having joined at a young age in 2017, Antonio ‘Th3Antonio’ Espinosa has become one of the most decorated players of the LVP Superliga and of GIANTX history. During his time with the team, he has won four Superliga titles, two Iberian Cups, one Copa, and has reached an EMEA Masters final, as well as other national competitions.
The decision to promote Th3Antonio reflects GIANTX’s need to implement changes following the results of the LEC Winter and Spring split seasons. In both splits, the team fell short in the first round of playoffs. The Summer split season is the main shot at Worlds for all teams, and the aim of the club was to make the necessary changes to achieve this goal. After a period of reflection and numerous trials, Th3Antonio has been chosen for the toplaner position.
eSports
L&G esports team founded by Alona Shevtsova won the national Dragon EC Cup tournament
Ukrainian esports team L&G won the Dragon EC Cup tournament, held on the 20th of April by Dragon Esports Club. Four teams competed in the tournament’s final: Lazer Cats, L&G, which received a direct invitation to the final stage, EsportsBattle, and ThunderFlash, which had open qualifiers. During the Grand Final, the L&G team competed with Lazer Cats on Mirage, Anubis, and Vertigo maps.
“This victory is a testament to the exceptional talent and commitment of our players, as well as the collective effort of our coaching staff and support personnel,” said Alona Shevtsova, founder of L&G Esports. “We are immensely proud of their accomplishments and grateful for the unwavering support of our fans.”
L&G is among the top 5 Ukrainian teams in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. It was founded in 2021. The previous name was Leogaming, and it was created on the initiative of the famous Alona Shevtsova from the fintech sector.
The team began competing in top tournaments and almost immediately made it to the Advanced division of the ESEA League Europe competition. The team also participated in and took prizes in European tournaments such as the SCL League, WhiteBit Crypto Open, Phoenix League, and local competitions. The team players are marat2k, r0ublE, kr1vda, kL1o, OneUn1que, rji (coach).
The winners received a 50,000 UAH prize. Dragon Esports Club also prepared a 15-skin giveaway for the broadcast’s viewers.
It is worth mentioning that the L&G team created its merch items, which are available for order worldwide. To get more information about the team, visit the L&G Instagram page, Twitch, or Telegram Channel.
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