It is with lots of anticipation that the world of competitive gaming and esports will take even more of a collective mainstream stage as 2018 begins. From the launch of the Overwatch League and the NBA 2K league to investor pools growing, as well as the continued expansion of Amazon-owned Twitch and other streaming platforms; not to mentioned the increased efforts of Turner, Riot Games and a slew of other publishers, the frenzy around the rise of gaming will continue unabated as we turn the corner.
Which games will be the rage in the mainstream? What is the real money? What is a successful property? Where will consolidation take place? What brands will see at ROI? What personalities will emerge and where will the storytelling go? All of which remains to be seen as this very fluid and pretty volatile space takes more dollars and draws more and more business sense as the year moves along.
With all that in mind we reached out to a half dozen folks who are in the know as to who people should be following on a platform like Twitter to get information, accuracy and a fair shake. While it is interesting to see that Twitter is not really the platform of choice for many heavily involved in gaming, there are more than enough interesting voices to following. Here is a list of many whose names and hashtags popped up as ones to follow. It certainly isn’t the be all end all of lists, but it is a relatively solid starting point as the business of competitive gaming has an even brighter spotlight shown on it this winter and early fall. Comments are always welcomed, and good additions can always be raised. It is, like everything else in the esports business right now, just a bit of a primer.
Also note for women and people of color in the space; you are MUCH NEEDED here, so seems like a big oppt coming…
We stayed away from the team owner voices and game owners like Jace Hall, Zach Leonsis, Rick Fox, Brendan Donohue at NBA 2K, and many others to keep the list to those more agnostic and those covering news. All are worthwhile follows as well.
Anton Ferraro @JokrCantSpell
An esports lifer who knows the investment side and has a great grasp of where the business is going. Helped really grow Major League Gaming and has a fast-growing podcast on the business of esports as well.
Ben Fischer @BenFischerSBJ
While he will also be busy with the Olympics, Ben is Sports Business Journal’s esports lead. Has broken some stories in the past and continues to focus on the business side of esports.
Blake Robbins @blakeir
Worked at Google & SpaceX. Tipped off followers about Ether when it was at $22, works for a VC firm in Detroit. Also was just retained to run 100Thieves for the Cavaliers.
Chris Purcell @vegasandvine
Cynopsis does a conference on the space and a weekly newsletter; Chris is your guy
Daniel Ahmad @ZhugeEx
An Analyst focusing on the Chinese gaming industry. Usually breaks stories before mainstream media and the best source on China and gaming.
Dot Esports @dotesports
One of several key esports publications with some solid business stories.
Esports Observer @esportsobserved
The Germany based esports business publication now owned by Sports Business Journal.
Jacob Wolf @JacobNWolf
ESPN Esports reporter. Probably the reporter who has broken the most esports stories in 2017, and will continue to do so in 2018.
Joost van Dreunen @SuperData
CEO of Superdata. Great resource for anything data related to gaming and esports. Author of a great weekly newsletter.
Manny Anekal @mannyanekal ?
The founder of Team Versus Consulting has a really strong newsletter and is very active in the business news space as well also has a solid eSports Podcast: http://apple.co/2aOtgIw
Maurice Eisenmann @MREisenmann
I’m partial as Maurice helps run our podcast at Columbia, but he does his own podcast as well and as a key contributor for the upcoming WHAM Network, which will cover all of gaming, is a smart and very effective player in esports.
Moritz Maurer @eSportsMoritz
Another young and effective voice in the space, especially with regard to the growing business of data protection and gambling in the space in the coming year.
Nathan Lindberg @TheRealNate ?
Smart and well-spoken voice in all things esports, especially given his lead role on the sales side at Twitch. Always interesting and entertaining.
Rod Breslau @Slasher
Has worked at or helped launch a host of esports news sites; an insiders insider across the gaming business.
Ryan Morrison @MRRyanMorrison
Founder of Morrison Lee Law and esports talent agency Evolved; has been a loud voice and growing louder and more informed.
Serkan Toto @serkantoto
The CEO of a consultancy firm focusing on the Japanese gaming industry. Great follow for Japanese gaming news.
The Ballgamer @TheBallG
New to the scene but focused on NBA 2K news. If the platform has stories to break this may be the place.
Travis Gafford @TravisGafford
Former head of Yahoo esports and respected esports journalist primarily covering League of Legends.
Yuji Nakamura @ynakamura56
Bloomberg reporter covering the Japanese gaming, tech and esports industry.
