As esports winter extends into 2024, Blast has claimed profitability for 2023, a stark contrast with the ongoing struggles of some of its competitors. The company’s secret: a co-production strategy that requires both Blast and its publisher partners to buy into the success of its esports products.
It’s layoff season in the gaming industry, and esports has been far from exempt from the wave of cuts. In January, Activision Blizzard let go of the majority of its esports staff; on Tuesday, Feb. 27, the competitive gaming giant ESL/FACEIT Group announced its own 15 percent cut. The news has some observers wondering whether game publishers or their partners are really in esports for the long haul.
None of that doom and gloom was to be found at last weekend’s Six Invitational 2024, competitive “Rainbow Six Siege” event held in São Paulo in partnership between Blast and Ubisoft. Blast executives and staff at the Invitational projected confidence about their future, pointing out both the aforementioned profitability and the event’s record-breaking attendance and viewership. (Note: Ubisoft paid for this reporter to travel and board for the final weekend of the event.)
Continue reading this article on digiday.com. Sign up for Digiday newsletters to get the latest on media, marketing and the future of TV.
The original post is at Marketing Archives – Digiday
Leave a Reply