Digital Media September 25 2019 E S P O R T S R E P O R T v Esports: Transforming Media and Entertainment Passing the Billion Dollar Mark – Audience Momentum Commands Attention of Advertisers, Legacy Sports Platforms, & Investors SEPTEMBER 25, 2019 | echlonpartners.com Rob Goff 1 416 933 3351 |
[email protected] Gianluca Tucci 1 647 794 1926 |
[email protected] Pooja Sharma 1 647 794 1922 |
[email protected] Karolina Kosior 1 604 647 4379 |
[email protected] 1 Digital Media September 25 2019 FOREWORD By Rob Goff, CFA SUMMARY (3-11) Head of Research, Managing Director, Telecom Services and New Media, Echelon Wealth Partners We are exceptionally bullish on the broadly defined esports ecosystem as an emerging new media and ESPORTS PERSPECTIVE COVETED, LOYAL FAN entertainment market set to eclipse the billion-dollar BEYOND THE $1.1B MARK BASE THAT ADVERTISERS threshold. (12-23) FIND HARD TO REACH Technology, demographic, regulatory, and capital (24-30) tailwinds support compelling value realization across the ecosystem. The shift of legacy advertising and sponsorship dollars to esports’ audience demographics where the IP enabled targeting capabilities and measured advertising ROIs are in the early innings is on track to surpass the billion-dollar mark. INVESTMENTS GOING ONLINE GAMBLING AND MAINSTREAM? (30-37) ITS RIPPLE EFFECTS (38-48) Billion-dollar legacy sports franchises need to play the long game given audiences that are increasingly long-in- the-tooth with average ages of 50+. Esports leagues and franchises represent both a hedge on audiences moving away from traditional sports but also a means to cultivate younger audiences.