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It makes sense to televise Esports

I support the showing and viewing of Esports. It's not a well-known subject but it is entertaining and worth a lot of money. ESPN's choice to show the Dota 2 World Championship, The International, was a smart choice. I believe this move was a huge step to more Esports coverage and awareness, both in the business world and entertainment world.

On July 20, 2014, ESPN 3 covered the Dota 2 World Championship bringing in over 300,000 people watching that day. Some other World Championships have brought in more views than actual sports games. The prize pool for The International 4 was roughly around $11 million.

Most Esports coverage comes from live streaming sites such as hitbox.tv and twitch.tv. During August of 2014, Twitch agreed to a $970 million deal where Amazon would acquire twitch.tv. Before Amazon's offer, Google offered over $1 billion for the streaming site. The reason Twitch is worth so much is due to huge user-base and streamers broadcasting.

If more TV networks or streaming sites cover and allow Esports games, then more networks can grow instead of shrink. Overall viewers go up, making more people use your good/service, helping grow a profit and fan base.

In the long run, the biggest signal for businesses and even the viewers is having something that brings people back, something to remember. With most World Championships having a prize pool of some odd million dollars, or a sold-out soccer stadium with 40,000 people watching, or at home in front of a TV or computer, people love video games.

From NES to the new consoles like Xbox One & PS4 or PC, fans will always pay for the next new thing or game.

Sean Santore

Hawthorn Woods

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