Last year, Jinx—a company perhaps best known for its Minecraft apparel—announced that it would create clothing and accessories specifically for e-sports players and fans under the Jinx Pro brand, including licensed products tied to teams such as Team Liquid and Echo Fox. It is one of a growing, but still small, group of manufacturers acquiring licensing rights for properties connected to the fast-growing e-sports sector.
One predictor of future licensing growth is the rising number of sponsorship and marketing deals. Of particular note are the partnerships that involve brands in core categories for e-sports licensing. These types of deals not only demonstrate corporate interest in the e-sports sector. They could also open the door to signature product lines as part of the sponsorship. A track record of success among the latter would likely spur other companies to sign on as licensees.
In high-end gaming accessories, HyperX serves as the official headset sponsor of ELeague, ESL Gaming, Major League Gaming, G2 Esports, and other e-sports entities, while ASUS Republic of Gamers is the exclusive hardware provider for the Echo Fox team. In energy drinks, G Fuel has an official marketing partnership with ELeague, becoming the official energy drink and securing naming rights to the studio where the league’s competitions are held.
Another potential precursor to more licensing activity in e-sports is the development of products tailored to pro and avid amateur competitive gamers. Gaming accessories companies pioneered e-sports-specific products, but apparel companies are coming on board as well. KontrolFreek launched a line of Performance Gaming Wear, including gaming shorts and hoodies made of ultralight, moisture-wicking fabrics, for example. The Jinx Pro line is similar.
Research shows corporate e-sports partnerships can be effective. Nielsen has found that 64% of e-sports fans have a better opinion of a brand overall when it is directly involved in e-sports, 64% say they consider purchasing such a brand, and 59% have purchased. Another 56% say they recommend a brand with an e-sports connection, while 54% say they become brand-loyal.
Beyond sponsorship, a few apparel and accessories, gaming accessories, and energy drink companies have, like Jinx, dipped their toes into traditional licensing deals with e-sports entities. The properties involved include leagues (e.g., the Korean eSports Association Pro League), teams (Fnatic), and players (Johnathan “Falat1ty” Wendel).
Such deals, now relatively rare, are likely to grow in number once more sponsors and e-sports-specific product lines come into the competitive gaming sector and offer proof of its commercial viability.
To read about how traditional sports leagues and teams are getting into e-sports—another probable indicator of future licensing growth—read last week’s post, “On Sports and E-Sports.”
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