While the future of eSports looks incredibly bright as viewership continues to rise, there are however several challenges and threats that could prove difficult. The first of which being the polarization of the streaming industry with Disney+, HBOMax, Peacock, and many other streaming services being rolled out soon. With this sudden surge in content and options, viewers will have a lot of different content to choose from and may lead to less viewership for eSports.
Luckily, according to Business Insider, the eSports industry has been diversifying its distribution channels, as they are making more deals with traditional television channels like ESPN and TBS. While trends show most viewers are now cutting the cord, live events still win out on traditional television and this move for eSports competitions is fantastic as they have diversified their content distribution and can also reach new audiences.
But another challenge that presents itself for the eSports industry is the games themselves. In traditional sports, the sports is standardized and globally understood and set in stone. While some rules around soccer might change every couple years, the sport is still soccer and the viewers are still watching soccer. But with eSports, the sport is the video game itself. So, the industry relies on the production of highly competitive and entertaining games that can transition from commercial and recreational play into a professional competitive space. And while the biggest game in eSports, League of Legends, has been around for 10 years and keeps updating and adapting to continue in the future, there is a heavy risk the the industry relies on these video games.
But this provides the industry with a major opportunity. I believe that the largest eSports venues and streaming services should themselves be involved in the production of games. Those who directly benefit should be the ones making these games as they can bridge the gap between what players want to play and what viewers want to see. Perhaps streaming services like Twitch and Mixer can invest into the creation of very tactical competitive shooter games to create exclusive content geared towards eSports. Because once you take out the reliance on others to create these games, you’ve become the market maker and can reap all the benefits.
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