In an increasingly competitive broadcasting market, there seems to be more importance placed on exclusive broadcasting rights. The most recent example of this comes in the form of a reported deal between YouTube and Activision Blizzard Esports.
The deal totals at $160 million over three years, according to The Esports Observer. This deal seems to be an effort to bolster the partnership between Google and Activision Blizzard.
The stated $160 million value of the deal, according to various sources, encompasses three different properties, including Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Hearthstone. The majority of this deal is contributed toward the Overwatch League, followed by a large value given to the Call of Duty League. Meanwhile, Hearthstone was described as basically included for free in the deal.
The team and executives around the league are reportedly very satisfied with the deal. The Overwatch League may not be getting any increase from the deal previously made with Twitch. However, there are incentives within the deal regarding viewership and ad sales, which means that there will theoretically be far more revenue going to the leagues.
There are further incentives in the deal. For example, Google Cloud will be giving Activision Blizzard access to its cloud computing services. Sources consider this significant as per Activision Blizzard’s status as one of the most powerful players in the gaming industry.
This move is highly important to the esports industry altogether, as noted by Stuart Saw, Endeavor’s Senior VP of Esports. Saw writes that the deal is the first time a “tier one western game developer” has left Twitch for an exclusive partnership, as is the case with Activision Blizzard and YouTube.
Saw added that it also shows how Google and YouTube may be focusing much of their firepower on the esports scene. By securing an exclusive deal with a developer like Activision Blizzard, much of Twitch’s viewership will likely migrate to YouTube’s platform for esports consumption.
