Steve Bornstein knows what he’s doing. He led ESPN during a period of great flourishing as it launched new channels and branched into radio and print. His reign saw almost 60 Emmys, and when he was on top, he moved on to launch the NFL Network (maybe you’ve heard of it).
Bornstein has taken notice of Activision Blizzard and the popularity of their games, one of which is basically the national sport of South Korea. In a statement Bornstein said, “Last year, Activision Blizzard created entertainment that was viewed and played by over 150 million people for more than 13 billion hours. This dwarfs the engagement that fans spend on all other sports.” He goes on, “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.”
This belief has led Bornstein to team up with Activision Blizzard to form a new eSports subsidiary. We don’t know exactly how the new division will work, or whether they will have their own channel or streaming service, but you can expect more details very soon.
Source: Polygon