YouTube spent twice as much for the exclusive streaming rights to Activision Blizzard eSports events than the previous rights holder, Twitch. New details regarding the monumental deal were unveiled, including the possible price tag for the rights to broadcast Activision content going forward. Twitch, which was acquired by Amazon in 2014, recently fell short of its ad revenue goals and could be further financially impacted by YouTube's new deal.
Just last month, Activision Blizzard announced they were breaking away from previous streaming provider Twitch, to partner with internet giant YouTube. The move grants them exclusive streaming rights to the company's eSports competitions like the inaugural Call of Duty League season, Overwatch League, and Hearthstone events starting this year. This deal has gained a ton of publicity for the Google-owned media site, making it perhaps the biggest news story involving Activision in recent memory.
As reported by Eurogamer, YouTube paid a total of $160 million for exclusive streaming rights to Activision Blizzard events, in addition to "significant incentive clauses for ad sales and viewership targets." This is nearly double the amount Twitch gave Activision for their previous deal in 2018, which was believed to cost somewhere in the range of $90 million.
According to YouTube parent company Google, the deciding factor for Activision to choose YouTube over a renewal of their Twitch partnership was Google Cloud's "highly reliable global footprint, advanced data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, and commitment to open source." Among the first content to stream as a part of this deal is the upcoming Overwatch League season, which recently had to re-schedule some of its events due to the recent Coronavirus outbreak in China.
Despite a rocky start and continued public scrutiny, eSports competitions seem to be gaining considerable traction in the entertainment world. Major celebrities, like Michael B. Jordan, have appeared at the League events, and companies like Bud Light started sponsoring League of Legends teams. It's only natural that YouTube is willing to pay through the nose for the exclusive streaming rights to such events, especially ones involving hit titles like Call Of Duty and Overwatch. Still, with competitors like Twitch and Mixer continuing to dominate the world of online gaming, only time will tell if YouTube can step up as a leader in eSports streaming content – but so far, it seems to have acquired a powerful asset in Activision Blizzard's events.
Source: Eurogamer