Sky and ITV have joined forces with Ginx to launch a 24-hour eSports channel.
The investment will see the Ginx TV channel rebrand as Ginx eSports TV, and will be the UK and Ireland’s only 24-hour eSports TV channel.
Launching on 23 June, the channel will showcase major eSports tournaments as well as independent programming.
The schedule will include coverage of Turner’s ELeague tournament, Face It‘s eSports Championship Series, as well as Valve’s International Dota 2.
“GINX eSports TV aims to add significant mainstream TV exposure to the fast growing eSports ecosystem,” said Michiel Bakker, Ginx TV CEO, said.
“Complementing online streaming, with an entertainment-led approach, the launch on Sky and the rebrand across all our 37 million households allows us to help new audiences discover eSports and hopefully gives core fans a fresh perspective.
“I am delighted about the prospect of Sky and ITV joining our shareholder roster, it goes without saying that the combined media footprint and expertise of both presents a significant opportunity for us to make a bigger impact, faster.”
Outside of the UK and Ireland, GINX eSports TV will be distributed to an additional 23 million households, which the companies claim will make it the largest eSport channel in the world.
Simon Pitts ITV’s managing director of online, pay and interactive, said, “eSports is experiencing phenomenal growth and Ginx’s vision is to bring together two incredibly popular forms of entertainment – gaming and television – to create a unique, global proposition.
“We’re delighted to be partnering with Ginx and Sky as part of our strategy to target younger audiences, develop new programming genres and expand internationally.”
