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ESL One Cologne 2018 powered by Intel booked a trip to the LANXESS Arena in Cologne to bring 16 of the world’s best CS:GO teams into the Cathedral of Counter-Strike. The main event spans July 6-8 with a $300,000 prize pool on the line. The tournament will also run as part of the Intel Grand Slam circuit where the first team to win 4 of the premier events hosted by ESL or DreamHack will win $1,000,000.
Meanwhile, MLG unveiled groups for pool play for the first major Call of Duty World League LAN event for WWII with 16 teams in contention at the CWL Dallas Open next week. Four pools were unveiled with an additional open bracket team set to be added in each. Pool A will see OpTic Gaming, Enigma6, UNILAD, and Team Envy. Pool B will consist of Luminosity, Ground Zero, Team Vitality, and Epsilon Esports. Pool C features Team Kaliber, Red Reserve, Rise Nation and Mindfreak, while Pool D hosts Splyce, eUnited, Ghost Gaming and Evil Geniuses.
ELEAGUE detailed plans for The ELEAGUE Cup: Rocket League, with the first live matches slated to launch on Dec. 1 at 2p on Twitch. TBS will also televise a three-part The ELEAGUE Cup: Rocket League feature series beginning Dec. 1 at 10p. Coverage of each match will be hosted by Richard Lewis with game commentary and studio analysis from Caleb “WavePunk” Simmons, Michael “Achieves” Williams, Kevin “FindableCarpet” Brown, Adam “Lawler” Thorntonand Alex “Goldenboy” Mendez. In addition, the debut show will include sit-down conversations with superstar players and take audiences on location with legendary player Cameron “Kronovi” Bills of G2 Esports.
DreamHack Masters is headed to Stockholm and Ericsson Globe for 2018. Through a partnership with City of Stockholm and Stockholm Live, the capital of Sweden will be a host city of DreamHack Masters going forward with DreamHack Masters Stockholm 2018 slated to take place September 1-2, and a group stage to be held prior to the main event between Aug. 29-31. “We are tremendously excited to head to Stockholm with DreamHack Masters,” said Marcus Lindmark, CEO & President of DreamHack AB. “Stockholm is the home of the DreamHack headquarters and Stockholm Live has some of the best facilities available globally, so we are going to have everything at our fingertips to produce the best esport event and experience possible, for both viewers onsite and online.”
Blizzard opened the curtains to the Overwatch Path to Pro, described as “a system for 2018 that will provide a path for players of all skill levels to grow as competitors and as teammates.” Plans include – beginning in March – Overwatch Contenders expanding beyond North America and Europe, to encompass a total of seven regions with three seasons a year, adding Australia and South America. Overwatch APEX, Overwatch Premier Series, and the Overwatch Pacific Championship will become Contenders Korea, Contenders China, and Contenders Pacific, respectively. Meanwhile, Overwatch Open Division returns in January in the same seven regions as Contenders and starting in February, the top four Open Division teams from each region will be invited to compete in that region’s Contenders Trials, an eight-team promotion-relegation tournament for Overwatch Contenders.
Events DC will partner with Moonduck Studios to host its first-ever esports tournament, Captains Draft 4.0 at the DC Armory. The tournament will run Jan. 4-7 and will serve as the only public Dota 2 Minor in the United States planned for 2018. This tournament will feature eight of the top Dota 2 teams from around the world, who will battle it out for $300,000 in prize money.
INSIGHTS
Source: Streamhatchet.com
SPONSOR ACTIVATION
Hardware manufacturer HyperX is giving DreamHack Winter 2017 the battle royale treatment, announcing that the brand will host a PlayerUnknown’s BattleGrounds tournament at the festival in Sweden, which is starting on Dec. 2. The first 100 people to arrive at DreamHack and join the server can compete with a shot at nabbing HyperX products.
That won’t be the only PUBG presence at DreamHack, however. Gaming gear brand SteelSeries hits DreamHack Winter this week with plans to host a PUBG 1v1 tournament across the three days of the festival. Four qualifiers will take place on Friday and Saturday before Sunday’s championship, with viewers able to watch on Twitch with a shot to win a limited edition mousepad.
Beer brand San Miguel beer reportedly locked in a partnership deal with Spanish esports squad Team Heretics where it will serve as a major sponsor and mark the first European beer producer to enter the esports industry. “It’s always our desire to explore, and that led to this agreement,” said Miguel Cabrero, San Miguel’s marketing director, per EI. “Our brand becomes once again a pioneer, this time in entering the esports world. We now want to spread the joy of exploring and sharing.”
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Getting Maximum Impact from Experiential Marketing
Cynopsis Webinar |Tuesday, January 30, 2018 | 1:30pm
The more that millennials turn away from traditional advertising, combined with the downward trend of TV ratings, the smarter it is for marketers to create experiential events that build brand awareness and drive loyalty through one-on-one connections with consumers. Learn how to execute experiences that will resonate with your target audience and supercharge your story in this essential webinar.
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MARKETING/PROMOTION |
Kellogg’s and Nintendo are offering a new twitch for Super Mario Cereal, a new product that will promote Super Mario Odyssey and will serve as an amiibo, per Cerealously. The cereal, of course, features Mario and Cappy on the box with star-shaped oats and marshmallow pieces in the shape of Super Mushrooms, 1-Up Mushrooms and “?” boxes.
This year’s edition of PlayStation Experience 2017 has its lineup in order, with the show set to run at 8p PT on Dec. 8 from Anaheim. According to the company, this year’s lineup will feature sessions that include a PlayStation VR Game Panel, Media Molecule Presents Dreams , IGN Ranks the Top 10 PlayStation Games of all Time, Ghost of Tsushima: From Concept to Reveal, Uncharted 10th Anniversary Celebration and The Last of Us Part II: Meet the Cast. Fans can watch the show at live.playstation.com and earn rewards, or stream on Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook.
PLATFORMS
Evil Geniuses continue their march toward world domination, this time releasing a new digital series showcasing the Evil Geniuses Call of Duty team, going behind the scenes all season long with players that include Nameless, Enable, Apathy, Aches, and Towey. Ep one is now out and covers how the roster came together, the new Xfinity Training Facility they all train together in, and the release of Call of Duty: WWII and how they’re adjusting to that game. The series can be found here and is produced by Comcast with about 12 episodes in the cards.
Mobile esports company Skillz unveiled chat and friends systems cross-platform and cross-app as part of the Skillz Tournament Management System. The new social technology “is the first integrated chat experience to connect millions of gamers across thousands of games on both iOS and Android” and is now available in several of the over 2,500 Skillz-integrated games and includes friends, direct messaging, group chat, and cross-studio, cross-platform public chat.
Unity Technologies announced that the company has entered into a definitive acquisition agreement to acquire Multiplay Ltd and its game hosting business from GAME Digital. “The team at Multiplay have created scalable multiplayer technology that gives all game creators, from indies to AAA studios, the ability to create performant experiences that can serve hundreds of thousands of players at once,” said John Riccitiello, CEO of Unity Technologies. “We welcome the Multiplay team to the Unity family.”
Fun story about four University of Maryland grad students leveraging the power of Twitch to launch a two-hour pop-up Call of Duty: WWII Zombie pay-to-play tournament on Saturday as part of their Entrepreneurship class. The tournament runs on channel Longshots_Entertainment at 8p.
TEAMS
Gfinity takes on Oz with the Australian Gfinity Elite Series, announcing that the slate will showcase seven city based teams across the country in: Melbourne Metattak; Melbourne Rebolte; Sydney Bluesurge; Sydney Opsydian; Adelaide Photonics; Brisbane Deceptors; and Perth Subnets. Dominic Redmond will top the league. Competition could begin as early as this year.
With new franchises confirmed for the North American League of Legends Championship Series, Riot Games is now giving franchises a year to untangle themselves from ownership conflicts, per ESPN. Teams involved include Cloud9, Team Liquid, and the Golden State Warriors with company rules forbidding multiple teams in the league from sharing the same owners, even in minority or passive positions.
ESL is teaming with the German Games Industry Association as well as 20 professional and semi-professional teams to form the Esports-Bundes Deutschland. The new org will look to serve as a professional sports association in the way that it represents players, clubs, teams and tournament organizers across the field.
Two-time Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso is testing a new track, launching his own esports racing team, titled FA Racing, in partnership with G2 Esports and Logitech G. The team will participate across a variety of games, console and PC platforms, as well as all current competitions. “Every Formula 1 driver is a gamer at heart,” said Alonso. “Competing on the virtual stage opens a vast amount of possibilities for young drivers that wouldn’t otherwise have a chance to get into racing. For the first time ever, fans are no longer just spectators but can take part in the game and maybe become real sim racers on my team. I cannot think of better partners than G2 Esports and Logitech G to start this up with and I am raring to get going!”
Florida Southern College will become the first school in Florida to join the National Association of Collegiate Esports, a newly formed governing body for the emerging world of competitive college video gaming. The school’s esports program will initially target League of Legends.
TEAM SPOTLIGHT – Counter Logic Gaming
INDUSTRY
The mobile launch of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp scored 15 million downloads for its first six days in app stores. Those numbers mark Nintendo’s second-most successful launch, following only Super Mario Run.
Tencent signed on to bring PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds to the mobile market, announcing a deal with developer Bluehole that follows news that Tencent would have exclusivity on the title in China.
Superdata reports that revenue from microtransactions in free-to-play PC titles will reach $22 billion this year, up 15.7% over last year’s numbers. That would double revenue numbers for microtransactions in 2012, which reached $11 billion.
POWER PLAYERS – Tobias Sherman
After making headlines for spearheading WME’s foray into esports, where he oversaw a slew of deals that included a partnership with Turner Sports to launch ELEAGUE and the 76ers acquisition of Dignitas, Tobias Sherman also created waves when he departed the agency over the summer, taking three members of his team with him in a move that led to the launch of Foundry IV, a new game studio, earlier this month. Sherman, along with co-founders Simon Abitbol and Lilia Russo Sherman, is now looking to revamp the esports formula, anchored by seed round investment from MGM Resorts International.
Cynopsis spoke with Sherman about his views on the state of the esports industry, departing WME and what we can expect from his new company.
Sherman on leaving WME: We walked away feeling like we had created something that made WME a key player in the esports industry, but we had come to a crossroads about where we wanted to go from here. We could have easily stayed and collected a big paycheck but felt like we could best serve and forward the industry from a different place. I feel like that opportunity is one I will always value.
On challenges in esports: I never want to sound unappreciative to some of the great publishers who have made these strides, but two things in the marketplace make me nervous. One is the fact that ego suddenly entered into this industry and all of the sudden it was no longer about whether they can sell out a stadium, a terrific game experience or if people were going to watch. It was about who was getting the most money. The polar opposite of that was also a problem, as we’ve talked to publishers who say that they get this esports thing and they want use it just to create buzz for their own titles. We would spend hours creating decks and strategies for these meetings around how to really make games that were fringe esports into super competitive esports where they could land at an ESL or a third-party provider had they wanted to and eventually take it in-house. We’d walk in and be excited and the publisher would say “Oh, we don’t actually want to be an authentic esport, we just want to know how to use the word esports to make the most money.”
On the influx of sports investment: We’ve always advocated for talent and team, including endemic ones, and we don’t feel that there should be a whitewash of new sports teams coming in and taking over without any of the legacy incorporated into their partnerships. That’s what led me to do the first deal between Dignitas and the 76ers. I knew that if I could go ahead and get these dominos falling, more and more sports teams would come in. Little did I know that it would be an avalanche.
On leagues: The teams don’t own that game and that is a problem. It is an inevitability that team owners will want to own the IP. There is a major clash that is about to occur that I think the entire industry sees but the team owners and publishers don’t. I think the progression will look like this… they buy in, then they realize they don’t really know what they bought, and then they wonder why they bought this and finally they wonder how much more money they need to spend to make this profitable. That’s the progression. We figure that IP ownership is something that we can provide. If you look at the traditional sports world, team owners have a big voice at the table and in the NBA, for example, team owners own the league. So we feel like we can create a product roundup that isn’t a marketing vehicle and will instead serve as an esports build as a primary focus.
On Foundry IV’s upcoming title: It is a mixed genre game. We feel the mechanics of the game will provide a very high skill ceiling. In addition, this will be very friendly toward advertising. We don’t feel like violence is a key necessity for any esport. For so many years, we’ve developed a sense of what they want. We are building a game that has a great spectator feature, with the fans serving as the central focal-point while also giving the players a high skill cap and be able to turn into superstars. Being able to feature what they do in a way that is easily understandable by fans is also something we are factoring in.
ROSTER MOVES
Millennial Esports named Bob Reif as President, effective immediately. Reif previously served as Executive Vice President of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Chief Marketing Officer of the Indy Race League, and President of a division of William Morris Endeavor. He was also the Chief Revenue Officer and Chief Marketing Officer for the St. Louis Rams for twelve seasons, overseeing the organization’s growth from a $220M valuation to its current $3.5B valuation. “I see many parallels between the growth of the traditional sports sector and the potential for growth in the emerging Esports sector, with Millennial Esports leading the charge,” said Reif. “I’m confident my experience in the sports arena, particularly in the area of racing, will serve Millennial Esports well, and I’m excited to get started.”
The Golden State Warriors drafted former Yahoo esports topper Hunter Leigh as the brand’s head of esports. The Warriors esports team will take part in Riot Games’ new North American League of Legends Championship Series franchise system as well as the NBA’s upcoming NBA 2K League.
Meanwhile, Pacers Sports & Entertainment announced that Kelly Krauskopf, president and GM of the WNBA Indiana Fever, will relinquish her role as GM to Fever head coach Pokey Chatman while picking up increased responsibilities leading Pacers Sports & Entertainment’s new entry into the NBA2K League. Pacers Sports & Entertainment President and COO Rick Fuson stated, “We are fortunate to be able to widen Kelly’s duties to include oversight and direction of our esports business, and to have an experienced general manager on hand in Pokey to work with Kelly in continuing to keep the Fever as one of the WNBA’s most successful franchises.”
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With over 30 categories to choose from, we’ve got your covered!
We recognize awareness campaigns in every sector from children’s to sports to disaster-relief and exceptional content in the areas of social good (episodes, PSA’s, Use of VR, etc.) as well as partnerships that have fueled positive change in the communities they serve. View our full list of categories here and reach out to Cathy Pearson at 203.899.8470 with any questions.
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ON THIS DAY in 2004: Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is released worldwide
Trivia: In the theatrical version of Max Payne, what actor played the titular character? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company and city.)
Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question: In what film do the protagonists see if they can make Wayne Gretzky’s head bleed while playing NHL ’93? Answer: Swingers. Kudos: Chris Davies-Virgin/London; Danny Araque/NY; Matt Resnick-MSG/NY; Glen Ross/DC; Jason Morrow-Toyota/Houston; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Federal Credit Union/Burbank
Later — Chris |
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JOB OF THE DAY MANAGER, PRODUCTION ADMINISTRATION IFC LA |
Supervise the physical production and administration of all contractual payments for IFC’s Originals. Ability to cultivate productive relations with industry contacts externally & internally. 5 yrs exp w/ scripted production preferred.
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JOB OPENING: PROJECT MGR/PARAMOUNT NETWORK/NYC: Mng, plan & track all deliverables for project team incl. social, digital, mktg & creative assets. Work closely w/media plan’g, design, press, integrated mktg & talent. Exc client-facing & internal comm skills. Strong written & verbal comm skills. Resume HERE (12/7)
JOB OPENING: DIRECTOR, AD SALES/INSP/Charlotte SC: Drive new/incremental revenue & also one that services an existing list of mostly DR clients. Req’s a specific focus on new bus dvlpmnt & presentation skills. 3-5 yrs sales exp. Nat’l media plan’g/buying @agencies relationships a must. Full info/apply HERE (12/7)
JOB OPENING: MANAGER, PRODUCTION ADMINISTRATION/IFC/LA: Supervise the physical production and administration of all contractual payments for IFC’s Originals. Ability to cultivate productive relations with industry contacts externally & internally. 5 yrs exp w/ scripted production preferred. Apply HERE (12/7)
JOB OPENING: DIRECT RESPONSE SALES PLANNER//Crown Media Family Networks/NY: Provide sales and analytical support to the Direct Response Team. Monitor and manage inventory for Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, and Hallmark Drama. Provide internal analysis on inventory and sell-out levels. BS req. Apply HERE (12/7)
JOB OPENING: SALES PLANNER/ANALYST/NCM/NYC: Generate/calculate accurate proposals for mult acct directors supporting national sales, mktg, bus. dvlpmnt & regional sales teams. Knwlg of sales, advertising, mktg or related field industry a benefit. 2-3 yrs related business exp necessary. Full info/apply HERE (12/6)
JOB OPENING: DIRECTOR, AD SALES PLANNING/SIRIUS XM/NYC: Detail oriented & orgnz’d candidate to efficiently monetize inventory to maximize revenue. BA Deg &/or 6yrs relevant exp working in an Ad Sales dept in Pricing/Plan’g function in media advertising (radio a strong +) Wide orbit a +. Full info/apply HERE (12/5)
JOB OPENING: PLANNER AD SALES/SIRIUS XM/NYC: Work closely w/Acct Execs to understand scope of proposal req’s to independently review media schedules in an effort to monetize inventory. 3+yrs exp media advertising (radio &/or pricing & plan’g/sales analysis a strong +). Strong analytical/quant skills. Wide Orbit a + Full info/apply HERE (12/5)
JOB OPENING: VP BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT/Z Living (2 positions) NY & LA: Exceptional concept sellers in TV AD sales a must. Work closely w/Business Head and Ad Sales for brand activations assignments and quarterly projects. Previous portfolio of handling 3 to 7 M $ in Ad Sales w/strong relationships. Resume HERE (12/5)
JOB OPENING: MARKETS PRODUCER, BREAKING NEWS/CNBC/NYC: Dvlp/produce live reporter segments. Generate original ideas and market ideas daily, Min 4yrs exp producing in a live and breaking news TV environment with a demonstrated writing ability, research skills and communication skills. Full info/apply HERE (12/5)
JOB OPENING: SR DIRECTOR MARKETING/NBC Ent/NYC: I dentify/dvlp/implement consumer & trade media buying initiatives for 1st run syndication series. Dvlp mktg assets for ad sales team. Max exposure for companywide priorities. BA deg & 5 yrs exp w/media plan’g, digital mktg, ad sales w/focus TV. Full info/apply HERE (12/5)
JOB OPENING: FREELANCE SCHEDULER (PART-TIME)/CharmTV/Baltimore: Seeking a part-time freelance scheduler. Interested parties should ideally reside in the Maryland/DC/Virginia area and forward resume and contact information HERE (12/2)
JOB OPENING: SOCIAL MEDIA PRODUCER (PART-TIME)/CharmTV/Baltimore: Seeking a part-time social media producer to assist w/organic & paid campaigns on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. Interested parties should ideally reside in the Maryland/DC/Virginia area & forward resume & contact info HERE (12/2)
JOB OPENING: FREELANCE PUBLICIST (PART-TIME)/CharmTV/Baltimore: Seeking a part-time publicist to assist with award submissions, earned media, and digital PR. Interested parties should ideally reside in the Maryland/DC/Virginia area and forward resume and contact information HERE (12/2)
JOB OPENING: MANAGER/DIRECTOR AUDIENCE ANALYTICS/BET/NYC: Dvlp innovative & insightful initiatives that position & distinguish BETN on-air & digital brands in the marketplace. Work closely w/Sales Management on presentations and strategies. 5-8+ yr related media rsch media rsrch. Full info/apply HERE (12/1)
JOB OPENING: MANAGER/DIRECTOR, RESEARCH/BET/NYC: Mng strategic initiatives in support of Sr Ad Sales mngmnt. Identify process improvement & profit opps thru analysis of very large data pools. 6+ yrs related media rsrch. Understanding of Pricing & Plan’g/Inventory is ideal! Expert Nielsen apps a must. Full info/apply HERE (11/30)
JOB OPENING: SALES ASSISTANT/NBCUOTS/TLM WNEU/Newton Mass: Assist Acct Mgrs in preparation of sales material & presentation to advertising agencies & provide sales admin support. 3 yrs of sales asst; customer service rep at a TV station or rep firm a +. Full info/apply HERE (11/30)
JOB OPENING: DIRECTOR, CONSUMER INSIGHTS STRATEGY & ACTIVATION/Viacom/NYC: Mng overall communication & insights activation approach & plan between the GCI & other internal insights teams. Great att to detail a must. 5 +yrs exp project mngement, mktg, comms, strategic planning or consumer insights. Full info/apply HERE (11/30)
OTHER JOBS OF INTEREST
Boss Key Productions is looking for a talented and driven Senior Gameplay Engineer to help design and implement the future of dynamic, competitive multiplayer shooters.
Senior Gameplay Engineer
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Join our exceptional development team as a Gameplay Programmer on our new original IP targeting yet-to-be released VR platforms.
Gameplay Programmer for VR
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Naughty Dog is looking for a multiplayer level layout artist to create simplified level geometry and performing extensive play-testing and iteration.
Level / Environment Designer (Multiplayer)
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Work with an extremely talented team of engineers and artists to define the next generation of Avatars for the Roblox platform.
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Create strong environment assets that demonstrate a solid understanding of style, direction, and quality standards for each project.
Environment Artist
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Work closely with content creators to implement, expand, and maintain game systems for continually updated online titles
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Ready At Dawn is looking for a UI Artist to join us in creating high profile, original titles for both the VR and AAA console game spaces.
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Hi-Rez Studios is looking to hire an experienced Animator/Rigger to work on our Mobile Games.
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As a Marketing Manager at Freaks 4U Gaming, you are the gatekeeper between the customer and the agency.
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Work directly with the Game Development teams to enhance their productivity as well as the overall quality of our games.
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The Madden NFL team is looking for a Gameplay SE, with a skillset that includes animation, physics, and/or AI feature development.
Gameplay Software Engineer
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Boss Key Productions is looking for a kickass Full Stack Developer to help make the most amazing frontend and backend for our upcoming FPS LawBreakers. Click on the link for the details.
Full Stack Developer
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Manage Roblox’s app store presence across all mobile platforms as well as their presence in console stores.
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Move art assets through the approvals pipeline internally and with IP partners.
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