DENVER, CO--(NewMediaWire) - Aug 15, 2017) - SPYR, INC.
(OTC PINK: SPYR), a holding company with a wholly owned
subsidiary in the mobile game & app development and publishing
industry, released today the first in a series of interview-style
Q&A articles that will educate shareholders on SPYR's role
within the mobile games industry, entrance into the esports market,
the growth of the company's games portfolio, the addition of
Hollywood IP, etc.
This first Q&A article is with SPYR's VP of Strategic
Partnerships, Mike Turner.
Can you explain the makeup of the esports market?
Mike Turner: "We like to talk about the esports
ecosystem because it is comprised of many different groups that
form a symbiotic relationship. These groups include:
- Gamers/fans
Players (Professional or Competitive)
Advertisers
Publishers
Agencies
Venues
Organizations/Leagues
Streaming
-
Of course, it should not come as a surprise to anyone that SPYR
is moving Pocket Starships in an esports direction and intends to
publish additional titles that will lend themselves to
esports."
Where do game publishers like SPYR fit into the
esports industry?
Mike Turner: "Publishers bring these games to
market, and in coordination with the development team, establish
how the game is to be played and what changes happen over the life
of the game; which greatly affect the ongoing
competitions. Publishers are an integral and critical part of
the ecosystem, and can choose to be more open with their
integrations, APIs, and data or more closed. Since they
ultimately own the IP, they have the ultimate decision on how the
game is represented and played in these competitions.
- Many of the world's top publishers also operate the top esports
as well for instance:
- Activision/Blizzard - Call of Duty, Overwatch,
Hearthstone, World of Warcraft
Valve - CounterStrike & DOTA 2
Riot Games/Tencent - League of Legends & Honor of Kings
The industry is evolving where publishers are taking on a more
central role."
What are the benefits of tournaments/gaming events to a
publisher?
Mike Turner: "In the beginning, the
competitions, tournaments and live events are about getting the
'attention' of the game's target market, and the 'acquisition'
of new players who may hear about the game from a friend, but
mostly about the 'engagement' of the existing player
base. Keeping the current players of your game actively
playing and always thinking about your title is a great benefit and
pays off in terms of increased retention and additional conversion
to paying players from this engaged audience.
"When a game title is featured at a premier esports event, like
a DreamHack or IEM, this creates a buzz throughout the tight knit
gamer community. Not only for those tens of thousands of
potential fans who are sitting in the stadium, but also for the
tens of millions of viewers who tuned into the live stream over the
few days of the event. All of these millions of players are
highly targeted, likely core gamers, who have a demonstrated
affinity for competitive games.
"Further, these tournaments act as Community Development and
form solid and long-lasting bonds for the users who engage in these
events. The relationships with their team mates will keep the
players in your game versus losing them to another
pastime. Having these events and broadcasts also opens up more
partnership opportunities that can yield increased reach for your
gaming events, co-marketing partnerships, and increased brand
recognition or positive associations if the publisher can execute a
Partner Development strategy correctly.
"Finally, the publisher can derive direct revenue from a
variety of sources: additional monetization from players who want
to compete at their best, sponsorship dollars from brands,
co-marketing reach from partners, platforms, or events and media
rights or revenue from the most popular esports."
How will SPYR, or any publisher for that matter, make money
within this vast market?
Mike Turner: "Just like the other Publishers in
the gaming space, SPYR's esports program will move through various
stages of maturity that will unlock different revenue
streams.
1. Player Driven Revenue Stream: PvP Tournaments attract
more users to the game, make them stay longer, and make more
purchases as they fight through the ladders and online challenges
in each game.
2. Partnerships Driven Revenue Stream: Once a formal
tournament structure is implemented on an ongoing basis, SPYR
is able to sell direct deal sponsorship opportunities to brands who
want to reach this demographic; as viewership grows, revenue will
increase.
3. Licensing Driven Revenue Stream: SPYR then will leverage
and license the streaming rights for broadcast of each game title.
Larger media entities are progressively interested in acquiring
streaming rights for active and engaged viewers."
About SPYR
SPYR, INC. is a holding company that through its wholly owned
subsidiary SPYR APPS, LLC, is engaged in mobile application and
game publishing and development. The Company is currently
exploring opportunities for additional acquisitions in these and
other verticals, including mobile application and game development,
in order to expand its holdings, to drive and increase revenue and
to generate profits and build value for shareholders.
Safe Harbor Statement:
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