The collaboration will see BCTV and ESE collaborate to co-produce and co-distribute a gaming talent show across five countries; China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and Brazil. 

ESE will be managing the production and infrastructure of the show, which will feature promising young players who are striving to become esports professionals, demonstrating their skills on mobile titles including PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile (PUBGM) and Peacekeeper Elite.

A series of gaming tournaments will be held across the countries, starting next month and running until the end of the year. It is hoped the partnership will afford BTCV exposure to new markets and audiences, and create the potential for further partnerships within esports.

VYRAL, VidWe, Converters, and Next Level Agency will also be involved with the project.

BCTV is currently the only Proof of Work (PoW) cryptocurrency that offers reversible transactions on an immutable blockchain, adding a new layer of security for users. 

Radek Popiel, Chief Communications Officer at BTCV, commented: “Esport is a rapidly growing industry and driver for fintech based on cryptocurrencies. Those industries are already working together, and we want to contribute our part to the global cryptocurrencies adoption. We are glad that we can work with such an experienced partner as ESE on a shared project dedicated to the global gaming community, where young non-professional players can show their skills. We are happy to support the crypto and gaming communities.”

Jedrzej Steszewski, ESE Director of EU Operations , added: “ESE is actively exploring new and innovative ways to incorporate cryptocurrencies and other blockchain based payment solutions within the gaming and esports world. We are thrilled to run this major gaming talent show with Bitcoin Vault in markets that are global leaders in esports and gaming.”

South Korea-based LCK worked with DesignStudio to come up with the new branding, which it describes as “beautifully and emotively packaged in audio visual form.” The move is aimed at helping the LCK communicate its stories and build on its heritage, as it battles to stand out in an increasingly crowded global esports space. 

Since being founded in 2009, DesignStudio has built a reputation as one of the world’s leading design firms, and now has offices in London, New York, and Sydney. The studio had already worked with Riot Games, on the LEC and Liga Latinoamérica, and Tencent Games, in addition to major global brands like Airbnb, British Airways, and the English Premier League.

Discussing the rebrand Head of KR Esports for Riot Games, Sean Oh, said:

“LCK is the best esports league in the world and aims to become the ‘Premier League’ of esports going forward. To achieve this goal, we knew LCK needed to be equipped with the brand power that well-matches the league’s status and also grow to draw attention not only from Korea, but also internationally. 

“DesignStudio has been a great advisor and partner in getting us a step closer to this ambition. Due to COVID-19, we were unable to meet in real life, but we could feel their passion and dedication at every moment through the screen. It was an honour for us to make legends with DesignStudio.”

While Creative Director for DesignStudio, Elise Santangelo, added:

“Our collaboration with the LCK team has been nothing short of incredible. Known for creating LoL’s best players, the LCK has the richest history, and continues to set the bar for esports.

“We defined ‘We Make Legends’ – a strategy to match their ambition, honour their past and look to the future, putting storytelling at their heart. Seeing LCK win at Worlds 2020 was the comeback we had all been waiting for – but with or without this epic victory, LCK is ready for a new era. We’re so proud to see this launch to the world.”

AYO.NEWS says:

Riot Games clearly has a good relationship with DesignStudio, so it’s no surprise to see them handling the LCK rebrand. Again, this goes to show just how far esports has come in terms of professionalism and sophistication, and we’re sure it’s just the first of many rebrands to be announced in 2021. 

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To help establish a strong Valorant esports ecosystem in South Korea, Riot will be providing funding to eight teams that make it through an extensive screening process. 

Each team will be eligible for up to three payments of up to ₩50M KRW (roughly $45K USD) during the 2021 season, assuming they meet the following minimum requirements:

1. Advance to the Challengers Finals at least once per stage.
2. Establishment and operation of a camp environment (establishment and operation of a camp environment such as accommodation, computer and equipment, meals and snacks, bedding, and rest area).
3. A formal contract must be signed with at least five players and at least one coaching staff. Deemed non-compliance with the maintenance requirements.
4. At least ₩500K ($450) per game, or equivalent compensation, must be paid to all players and coaching staff who competed in each stage (except for online qualifiers).
5. At least 50% of the total prize money must be distributed to the players and coaching staff participating in each stage.
6. Twitch and YouTube channels are required to operate, and at least one SNS channel must be separately operated.
7. Must have at least one secretariat representative, excluding submitted athletes and coaching staff.
8. All athletes, coaching staff, and secretariat staff must comply with the Valorant esports policy, competition rules, terms, and conditions (service terms, operating policies, etc.).

Full information is available at Riot Games Korea’s official site. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Riot is demonstrating it is serious about building a strong esports ecosystem for Valorant around the world, but these concrete measures in South Korea will certainly give teams the confidence to invest in the title, and bode well for 2021. 

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The agreement, which gives T1 access to Red Bull’s performance training centres, including facilities in Austria and California, covers all of T1’s competitive teams, which include Apex Legends, DOTA 2, Fortnite, PUBG Mobile, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and VALORANT. 

Formed in 2019 through a partnership between SK Telecom and Comcast Spectacor, T1 Entertainment & Sports is best known for its League of Legends team, which won three World Championships for the pre-Comcast Spectacor organisation, SK Telecom T1. 

Red Bull is one of the most heavily invested brands in esports, having a number of major teams in its sponsorship portfolio, including G2 Esports, Cloud9, and Vodafone Giants. It’s also hosted many esports events and competitions over the years, especially League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. 

T1 Entertainment & Sports is also partnered with Nike, BMW, Douyu, Twitch, SKT 5GX, Hana Bank, Samsung Odyssey, One Store, Klevv, Logitech G, Yibo Sports, and Secretlab.

AYO.NEWS says:

Red Bull is no stranger to esports, so this partnership isn’t exactly surprising, but we’re sure the support of the company will be appreciated by T1’s players and teams, especially if they get to take full advantage of Red Bull’s training infrastructure – though that will obviously depend on global travel opening up again soon. 

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According to an official statement, the developer of global hit PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS will continue to support PUBG and PUBG MOBILE in “select countries”, and will be concentrating on expanding the PUBG franchise into esports and other entertainment mediums. 

South Korea-based Krafton has also merged two of its other subsidiaries, PNIX, Inc. (Archery King), and Delusion Studio, Inc., (Castle Burn), into a new company called Rising Wings. 

Krafton’s independent studio system now includes PUBG Studio, Rising Wings, Striking Distance Studios, and Bluehole Studios. 

AYO.NEWS says:

It’s been quite a year for PUBG Corporation, with its battle royale title remaining hugely popular, and its mobile version doing especially well, seeing several new leagues formed. However, the Indian government’s decision to ban PUBG MOBILE in September, as part of its escalating dispute with China, hit the company hard. 

We doubt very much that the restructuring and renaming of PUBG Corporation to PUBG Studio will have any noticeable effect for players in the short term, as it’s probably mainly related to Krafton’s upcoming listing on the Korea Exchange (KRX) – which could value the company at a record $26B USD. However, it will be interesting to see how the franchise expands regarding esports, and which other entertainment mediums it enters, in the longer term.

As previously reported, in November Krafton announced a partnership with Microsoft, which will see it deploy its products, including PUBG and PUBG Mobile, using the Azure cloud computing service. 

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Major Events International is a consultancy specialising in connecting event organisers and suppliers, and the partnership will see it help the IESF find partners for its Global Esports Executive Summit – a hybrid digital/in-person event scheduled to take place in Busan, South Korea, in November 2020. 

Commenting on the news COO of Major Events International, Andy Rice, said:

“We are delighted to be working with the IESF to enhance their revenues and VIK support. Organizations like the IESF are looking for technological innovation and sustainable solutions that will mitigate risk, minimise cost and maximise stakeholder engagement- and therefore revenues. Our new partnership with IESF will undoubtedly provide new, and exciting solutions, and revenues for them.”

While President of International Esports Federation, Vlad Marinescu, added:

“We are very excited to partner with MEI to find the best possible marketing and sponsorship partners for our 5th Global Esports Executive Summit 2020. MEI will support GEES revenues, allowing us to provide the Esports market with a forum to discuss the challenges and opportunities which face this fast-moving and innovative branch of sports events.”

Earlier this month, Chile, Ecuador, Jordan, Libya, Luxembourg, Mauritania, Monaco, and Slovenia joined the IESF, bringing its member count to 82.

AYO.NEWS says:

The IESF’s upcoming hybrid digital/in-person summit is an interesting take on COVID-19 era events, and it’s notable the federation is tapping an experienced non-endemic consultancy to drum up sponsorships. If the summit is a commercial success it could well serve as a pattern for others. 

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Previously the partnership between T1, a joint venture between SK Telecom and Comcast Spectacor, and Twitch had focused on its League of Legends team only. However, the new expanded multi-year agreement covers all of T1’s talent. 

In January this year, T1 Esports & Entertainment inked an exclusive apparel partnership with global sportswear giant Nike, and has since announced deals with Logitech G, Samsung, Hana Bank, and BMW (in a deal alongside Cloud9, G2 Esports, Fnatic, and FunPlus Phoenix). 

In May, the organisation also announced an investment in Los Angeles-based esports analytics startup Mobalytics. 

In addition to League of Legends, T1 fields teams in Apex Legends, Hearthstone, PUBG, Overwatch, Fortnite, Dota 2, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Valorant, and FIFA Online 4. 

AYO.NEWS says:

With Twitch feeling the pressure from other streaming platforms, securing a multi-year deal with an organisation as big as T1 must be something of a relief. 

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