Major sporting events have all traditionally followed the same path of being broadcast across television – whilst the huge events that take place every four years are often offered free through different broadcasting options, the majority are often tied behind broadcasting deals that keep them tied to paid services or subscription options – these big sports all benefit from the huge broadcasting deals that often reach into the billions with individual teams all receiving a small slice of the pie, so to speak, but as many of the big broadcasting deals are set to expire in the coming years, big change could certainly be on the way, and esports is leading the way for that change.
The big esports events that are broadcast are all done so online primarily through platforms such as Twitch – viewers are able to tune in for free with little restriction and view games from all over the world in all regions and has been a large reason behind the success and growth for many. The accessibility has led to a growing audience finding viewing opportunities, and with more familiarity offered as different operators add esports to their roster, betting options have become plenty as a few can be found at esportsbetting.site – there is a drawback to this approach, given the broadcasting is done for free there are fewer opportunities for big deals to be signed and although there are some exclusive contracts as both Twitch and YouTube battle it out, there is still little competition.
(Image from mediatel.co.uk)
The opportunity for digital change that esports is bringing is already being shown however – some sports such as football have already made the shift across to big platforms like Amazon Prime with shorter three-year deals to cover a number of games, providing much easier access to a growing number of viewers, and others are certainly set to follow suit as similar broadcasting deals exist. There are some drawbacks, however, with the biggest notably being in adding yet another subscription cost to the growing list – being subscribed to a number of different sports channels and online platforms at the same time will lead to costs ramping up, and it may be difficult for many to justify paying for all of these services at the same time, particularly if an even number of games are split between them. Once the big broadcasting deals expire, if change is to come then the online services are going to have to try to pick up the majority of options, with the major shift to online entertainment, teams may be reluctant to sign longer deals once again, but if options aren’t available, they may have little choice.