Video game publisher Activision Blizzard has signed a multiyear esports contract with Google. The contract will see Google take control of Activision Blizzard and its game hosting including YouTube becoming the exclusive streaming partner for all its big esports titles including the upcoming Overwatch League, and Call of Duty 2020 league.
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YouTube will no doubt benefit from this deal as the platform has been struggling to keep up with the likes of Twitch. YouTube is the biggest video platform in the world but when it comes to gaming, it takes the back seat to Twitch especially in streaming. The contract also comes at a loss for Twitch which has been a long-running partner with Activision Blizzard and saw the publisher host its tournaments on the platform for the past few years.
Esports lives on @YouTubeGaming.
Welcome to the family, Overwatch League, Call of Duty League, and Hearthstone Esports.
Let’s get this thing going with the inaugural season of the Call of Duty league kicking off today! https://t.co/9PAUaaQSz0https://t.co/p9kSbD9aAi pic.twitter.com/rBVpf0Re3H
— Ryan Wyatt (@Fwiz) January 24, 2020
YouTube has been struggling to get into the gaming market for some time now. Its failed YouTube Gaming platform closed last year after “causing confusion” among viewers. YouTube then launched its own gaming hub instead and it has been going well for the brand.
The Activision Blizzard deal is just another move in the streaming wars and Google and YouTube will have to come to the party to compete with the likes of Mixer and Twitch.
YouTube’s head of gaming Ryan Wyatt celebrated the deal saying;
[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”#03F9F7″ class=”” size=”21″]“With more than 200 million gamers a day watching more than 50 billion hours of gaming content per year, YouTube provides gamers and their passionate fans with the most popular video gaming platform in the world. “Both the Overwatch League and Call of Duty League are the quintessential examples of world-class esports content. As a former Call of Duty esports commentator myself, I couldn’t be more excited for Activision Blizzard to choose YouTube as its exclusive home for the digital live streaming of both leagues. This partnership further demonstrates our dedication to having a world-class live streaming product for gaming.” [/perfectpullquote]
