Activision Just Joined the Big Leagues
Video-game titan Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) made headlines this week, when it announced the sale of the first seven teams for its Overwatch League to a broad cross-section of big league sports-team owners and veterans from the video-game industry. The New England Patriots' Robert Kraft and Jeff Wilpon of New York Mets fame are among the headliners for "the first major global professional esports league with city-based teams," according to the company's press release.
The first teams will take up residence in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Miami-Orlando, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Seoul. The rights to the Shanghai team were acquired by NetEase, Inc., a Chinese video-game producer, which also distributes Activision Blizzard games in China. The goal is to eventually build the league to 28 teams. Regular-season matches for the inaugural season will occur on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday and take place at a Los Angeles-based esports arena, giving the local teams time to develop their venues.
The potential for these leagues lies not only in building excitement and engagement from the fan base, but also in developing major-league sports franchises supported by ticketing, broadcast rights, sponsorships, and advertising.
Source: Fool.com