Yahoo Joins The eSports Crowd With Yahoo Esports
Published: Mar 14, 2016 - Last Updated: Jul 13, 2023
As Yahoo puts it, the new section is “a new premier destination for delivering professional eSports coverage across major games and events, coupled with a comprehensive product experience.”
According to the news release, the division is part of the company’s continued investment to provide the best sports content and experiences on Yahoo Sports. With a market worth about $463 million in 2016 and $1.1 billion by 2019, a forecast made by market research firm Newzoo, the move does make sense for a company like Yahoo.
Live eSports tournaments to be a focal point
According to the company, Yahoo Esports will focus on delivering unique video content experiences by covering live tournaments and going inside the action, focusing on the players and competition with expert commentary, superlative interviews, and in-depth features.
Additionally, the division will also offer industrywide calendars, stats, and player rankings, keeping all important info in one place.
Said Bob Condor, vice president of Yahoo Sports Media:
“We’re approaching our coverage of eSports with the same tenacity and professionalism we always have with Yahoo Sports, News, and Finance.
Coupled with our experience in building great products, we’ve gone out and assembled an experienced and innovative content team that will cover eSports from every angle.”
Serving as a comprehensive guide, the website will combine editorial and video commentary, match pages, team rosters, stats, related schedules, and scores.
It will also offer a live chat feature where fans can connect with the community and cheer for their favorite teams.
Site to feature popular titles, with more on the way
At first, Yahoo Esports will cover major titles like League of Legends, Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Heroes of the Storm, and Street Fighter V, and will add additional games over time.
“Today, eSports fans jump from place to place to understand what’s happening across professional gaming,” said Matt Edelman, product manager at Yahoo Esports.
“We’re launching a comprehensive destination for eSports fans everywhere, focused on delivering professional analysis, video content, live matches, team rosters, schedules, chat and more. And because eSports is 24/7, we’ll hide all spoilers by default so fans can enjoy matches on their time,” Edelman remarked.
No partnerships, no concerns about competition
When asked about any existing or future cooperation with services like Twitch, an established player in the eSports environment with a massive audience, Condor said that nothing as such currently exists.
He went on saying he’d rather not talk about competitors:
“We want the users and eSports community to decide how Yahoo fits into their day and week. We admire Twitch’s success and the things that they’ve done.”
“I don’t think there currently exists a website where you can go watch a stream of the tournaments happening, read original content and news in a way where certain people are exploring the space and doing exciting things. Yahoo is doing something I think that is really big, original, and industry-leading,” explained Travis Gafford, “State of the League” podcast creator.
Since: September 12, 2015
