UPC and Teleclub examine inclusion of e-sports in programming
UPC's two pay-TV channels Teleclub and MySports are apparently looking into an entry into electronic sports.
This is reported by SonntagsBlick in its current issue. UPC spokesman Bernhard Strapp tells the newspaper that there are currently "considerations for a format on MySports. And Swisscom subsidiary Teleclub is apparently also seriously considering an entry into live broadcasts of computer games. Head of Teleclub Claudia Lässer says that the company is monitoring developments and will make a decision on corresponding offers at Teleclub next fall.
E-sports are sporting competitions between people with the help of computer games. In many countries, the tournaments have been thrilling mass audiences for years. At the season finale of the Intel Extreme Masters, the highest division of the Electronic Sports League (ESL), a total of 173,000 people recently watched on site in Poland - over 10,000 viewers per competition (picture above). An additional 43 million followed the competitions on the Internet. The games played included the first-person shooter "Counterstrike" and the role-playing game "World of Warcraft.
In Switzerland, the development is still in its infancy - and the potential for development seems correspondingly large. UPC already operates the Swiss gamer forum Esports.ch in order to position itself as early as possible in the topic, according to Bernhard Strapp. The trend is generally upward. In this country, for example, the first soccer clubs have recently entered e-sports and have signed up players to take part in tournaments on behalf of the club. Since spring 2017, the Swiss flagship FC Basel has also been getting involved in e-sports. (Werbewoche.ch reported). In September 2016, the first Swiss e-sports football club, United Zurich, was launched and presented a renowned supporter in the form of Interdiscount (Werbewoche.ch reported).
The e-sports target group is young and therefore attractive. And above all, it is also potentially large in Switzerland: Around 800,000 people have an online gaming account. Media coverage of digital competitions could additionally drive development in Switzerland. (hae)
