SPYR Executive Discusses Company's Future in Mobile eSports
NEW YORK, NY-(Marketwired - November 04, 2016) - At the end of
October, SPYR, Inc. (OTCQB: SPYR) added Mike Turner, a video game
industry expert, to its team as its VP of Strategic Partnerships.
Stock Market Media Group (SMMG), a research and content development
investment relations firm, caught up with Turner, who will be
responsible for the development of strategic partnerships for
SPYR's games in Asian markets, as well as launching a new eSports
division, to discuss his role with the company and the growing
eSports craze around the world.
SMMG: What is it that attracted you to SPYR and, now that you
have joined the team, what will your focus be at the company?
Mike Turner: "The team that SPYR has put together is what
brought me to the company. We agree on the right way to operate our
games, and I have enjoyed my interactions with the executives as
well as our partners internationally. We have a great product in
Pocket Starships and I am excited about the roadmap as we listen to
our community and continue to implement more competitive features
and move the title toward the eSports space.
"My work now is collaborating with all parts of the company to
unify our vision, then execute the strategy to grow our Player vs.
Player (PvP) community and deliver more of the intense action
game-play in a more structured tournament framework. To do this in
the right way, it touches every aspect of the organization, so it
is great to see everyone is committed to giving our players more of
what they want through the excitement of competition.
"This also means bringing our players and game into the larger
community of eSports fans and companies. It takes a village, and it
is my responsibility to navigate SPYR & Pocket Starships
through the ecosystem of partners that can propel us to the next
level. In addition to this, I will be managing any business
relating to Asia as we leverage our portfolio across the
globe."
SMMG: In our next piece, we will get more into the Asian market
and partnerships, so here we'll focus on the growing fascination
with eSports. Everyone seems to want a piece of the action and so
many are getting involved in the space. What do you think the near
and long-term future holds for eSports?
Mike Turner: "It is really exciting what is happening around
eSports right now with all of the investment coming from
traditional professional sports (Shaq, Magic Johnson, PSG, and the
76ers) like the NBA and Pro Soccer. There is a lot of hype in the
space now, but we have seen what live streaming quality content can
do for the games, the teams, and the fans of this type of
competition. I think we will continue to see growth in the short
term as more titles break into the eSports scene and provide an
engaging and entertaining viewing experience for core fans and
newbies alike. We have seen Rocket League really take off to be one
of the latest new games to join in the PC side of the market.
"Long term, I think the future of eSports is even stronger based
on the proliferation of live streaming of games and aspirational
aspect for the viewers. The younger generations today are growing
up watching YouTube and consuming most of their media content on
demand rather than whatever the TV channels want to show them.
"When we were kids growing up, we never really thought we would
be playing on the biggest stage. With eSports, however, it is
different. It reminds me of the Super Bowl commercial Pokémon did
for their 20th Anniversary, where the competitors said, 'I can do
that.' Many people watch eSports for the entertainment value, and
the educational opportunity to get better at a game they really
love. There is also a decent sized segment of the gamers watching
who are thinking… on a good day, 'maybe I could be a pro.' That's
exciting and no wonder we see so many eSports fans; there are just
so many reasons to watch."
SMMG: Traditionally, the break out success stories for eSports
have been PC-based games, like League of Legends, DOTA 2, and
Counterstrike. Do you think now is the time for Mobile eSports?
Mike Turner: "Yes, traditionally it has been PC-based games that
have led the charge to make the eSports industry what it is today.
These games are great and have shown us what is possible when all
parties work together to bring the gamers what they want to see…the
'Worlds' just concluded last week, where over 20-thousand League of
Legends fans packed the Staples Center. Last year's League of
Legends finals event was watched by 36 million people. These are
huge numbers (Riot's 2013 event surpassed the NBA Finals and MLB
World Series viewers for 2013) so everyone is paying attention,
with ESPN & Turner both devoting serious resources to their new
programming on television.
"The style of real-time synchronous combat that is required in
eSports titles is now much more accessible on mobile devices.
Network connectivity has improved to the point where most people in
the Western world can sit down and find a strong connection to the
internet wherever they are in the day. Now that we are all carrying
around these glorious computers in our pockets, we can seriously
start to have real competitions on our mobile devices.
"We have already seen a few titles have early success in the
mobile eSports space, with Hearthstone, Vainglory, and more
recently Clash Royale growing a significant audience on mobile.
This trend will only continue as quality games offer a great battle
wherever and whenever the customer wants it. Live streaming on
mobile is an important part of the ecosystem, and I think the
recent Series B announcement of Mobcrush raising an additional $20
Million is another indicator that Mobile eSports is ready for
primetime."
SMMG: How can SPYR change the eSports landscape by introducing a
cross platform eSports game?
Mike Turner: "This is a real advantage of Pocket Starships, and
shows our commitment to bringing the fight to gamers, wherever they
prefer to play. Having the ability to practice on your home PC, but
to train on your mobile while you are on the go, makes things much
easier and puts the customer at the center of everything. Most
cross platform games can become unbalanced, where you would not
want a PC gamer playing against a Console player since the control
scheme is not equal. Pocket Starships has shown more flexibility
and consistently delivered balanced battles, no matter which
machine you are logged into.
"Combine this with the trend of everything going mobile (PayPal
just announced survey results showing 78% of gamers play on their
smartphone) and you can see the advantages of this approach.
Sometimes gamers don't have the time commitment required for a
20-40 minute League of Legends match, but they are looking for a
shorter session strategic experience they can enjoy with their
friends in a competitive way."
SMMG: SPYR is able to draw revenue from the $100 billion global
games market, as well as the almost $30 billion MMO market, but
eventually the company will also be able to draw revenue from the
almost $500 million ($1 billion by 2019) eSports market. Having
said that, do you see the eSports market being more of an advantage
to SPYR/Pocket Starships than just the revenue it can produce?
Mike Turner: "We are looking to integrate eSports into every
aspect of the game, and I think eSports has broad benefits to the
company outside of whatever financial benefits it brings. We are
looking at our efforts here in all aspects of the company:
- Attention - eSports fans of other titles can be introduced to
our brand through viewership of game play broadcasts. Media and PR
around our events can be another impression that adds up to gaining
the attention of our target audience.
- Acquisition - Through watching the game played at the highest
level, some users will want to give it a try for themselves.
Through an eSports event or an influencer who is playing the game
in front of their audience, some players will choose to immediately
download to their mobile phone based on watching the best.
- Engagement - For our existing players, eSports can be a chance
to test their skills against gamers of a similar skill, or for
educational benefit as they learn new tactics and skills to improve
their own performance.
- Retention - 'Gamers who play together, stay together.'
Building on top of the core PvP of the game, any additional game
modes we add will build short session, action filled multiplayer,
with strategic choices.
- Monetization - Although there may be several revenue streams
from the eSports Initiative, players' motivations to practice for
upcoming events will likely be our main revenue driver from this
initiative."
In our next article, we will look into SPYR's efforts to get
into the Asian markets using Mike Turner's expertise in this arena
as well as discussing the benefit of developing partnerships to
advance the company's goals in the industry.
About Stock Market Media Group
Stock Market Media Group is a Content Development IR firm
offering a platform for corporate stories to unfold in the media
with research reports, corporate videos, CEO interviews and feature
news articles.
Stock Market Media Group is an exclusive publisher for news,
updates, alerts and information on SPYR, Inc. ["SPYR"]. Our
publications about SPYR are based solely upon SPYR's authorized
press releases, and SPYR's legal disclosures made in SPYR's filings
with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Before we publish
any SPYR related content, our articles undergo compliance reviews
and factual verifications, including written confirmation of the
facts we publish from SPYR, and separately from SPYR's Legal
Counsel for Securities and Regulatory compliance, Mailander Law
Office, Inc.
Separate from the confirmed factual content of our articles
about SPYR, we may from time to time include our own opinions about
SPYR, its business, markets and opportunities. Any opinions we may
offer about SPYR are solely our own, and are made in reliance upon
our rights under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and
are provided solely for the general opinionated discussion of our
readers. Our opinions should not be considered to be complete,
precise, accurate, or current investment advice, or construed or
interpreted as research. Any investment decisions you may make
concerning SPYR or any other securities are solely your
responsibility based on your own due diligence. Our publications
about SPYR are provided only as an informational aid, and as a
starting point for doing additional independent research. We
encourage you to invest carefully and read the investor information
available at the web site of the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission at: www.sec.gov, where you can also find all of SPYR's
filings and disclosures. We also recommend, as a general rule, that
before investing in any securities you consult with a professional
financial planner or advisor, and you should conduct a complete and
independent investigation before investing in any security after
prudent consideration of all pertinent risks.
We are not a registered broker, dealer, analyst, or adviser. We
hold no investment licenses and may not sell, offer to sell or
offer to buy any security. Our publications about SPYR are not a
recommendation to buy or sell a security.
SEC RULE 17b
COMPENSATION DISCLOSURE
Section 17(b) of the 1933 Securities and Exchange Act requires
publishers who distribute information about publicly traded
securities for compensation, to disclose who paid them, the amount,
and the type of payment. In order to be in full compliance with the
Securities Act of 1933, Section 17(b), we are disclosing that we
entered into a contract with SPYR for one year on February 1, 2015.
We agreed to publish articles, news, updates, alerts and
information about SPYR, subject to SPYR's written confirmation of
factual content, and the separate confirmation of factual content
by SPYR's Legal Counsel for Securities and Regulatory Compliance.
In exchange for our services, SPYR agreed to compensate us with a
monthly fee of $5,000.00. Additionally, SPYR agreed to issue to us
250,000 shares of SPYR's Restricted Common Stock. Our rights to
sell any of this Restricted Common Stock are subject to prior
compliance with all U.S. Securities Laws, including but not limited
to Rule 144. Further, our sale of any of the Restricted Common
Stock is subject to a volume restriction providing that we may only
sell 5,000 shares daily for every 250,000 shares of daily trading
volume.
For more information: www.stockmarketmediagroup.com.
Contact:
Stock Market Media Group
info@stockmarketmediagroup.com
SPYR (PK) (USOTC:SPYR)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
SPYR (PK) (USOTC:SPYR)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024