35 ESPORTS BANG Electronic Arts
perspective we’re very lucky working with ESPN and The CW. They’re great partners that want to try new things,” adds Lynch. ROAD TO THE MADDEN BOWL EA has launched an esports tournament, the Madden Bowl, centred around its Madden NFL American football video game, which is broadcast from its own studio at EA headquarters in Redwood City, California. “We had these great numbers and part of the reason for it is not only that we’re producing good shows, but because of the way we’re leveraging all of our assets, to help get the word out,” explains Lynch. EA worked with ESPN on a four-part series called Road to the Madden Bowl, which lead up to the Madden Bowl final, telling the story of the entire Madden Championship season, who the players were, what tournaments they had won and how they got to where they are today. NOWWE HAVE OUR STUDIO, WE CAN JUST WALK DOWNSTAIRS AND GO TOWORK
UP TO THE CHALLENGE? EA has launched an esports tournament, the Madden Bowl, based on a popular video game
“If we had just been doing that on our own, on Twitch or on YouTube for example, we wouldn’t have had that ESPN megaphone to use. But by working with ESPN, we were able to tie it all together and really drive eyeballs to that final event,” Lynch says. But Lynch wasn't always in esports. In fact, he actually started his career in traditional TV, at NBC, and is aware of the irony of the digital world now using linear broadcast as a way to expand:
“Back then, we looked at digital as a way to reach new audiences, and now for us, linear is the way to reach new audiences. We’re going out on Twitch and the digital platforms. That’s where the gamers are, that’s where our demo is, but by going to a CW, or an ESPN or a Fox, we’re able to reach a separate set of people that aren’t necessarily the habitual gaming watchers, and we’re able to expose this content to a whole new group of people who we can bring into the fold.”
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