SuperData launches ESPORTS Scoreboard: LoL gets 215 M hours watched in August, PC top watching device

INTRODUCING: SuperData Esports Scoreboard  Ongoing measurement and insights on esports games, events, consumers SuperData's new gold-standard coverage of esports offers publishers, platforms, and brands crucial data on the global esports market Top games by viewership, active players, unique viewers, with country-specific data The esports market has finally hit the mainstream. Once only large in core Asian markets like Korea, esports have expanded worldwide and are now top of mind for every publisher, platform, and brand. As recognition of the importance of esports grows, the data and insights needed for strategizing become vital. Read more... Every month, the Esports Scoreboard offers:   Top esports games by viewership & hours watched with country breakouts   Monthly active players, top growing games, unique viewers    Recurring report of key metrics, major events, brand news, consumer insights     Learn more about the Esports Scoreboard Some recent insights from the Esports Scoreboard: Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) and shooter games dominated the esports audience in August. Among the 10 most-watched esports titles, two were MOBAs and four were shooters, garnering 273M and 237M viewers, respectively. MOBA will continue to reign through November thanks to upcoming tournaments like League of Legends World Championships. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) was the second most- watched title of August despite the lack of an established esports presence. The shooter only launched six months ago and has already surpassed 10M paid downloads. PUBG hosted its first esports event in August and its official Twitch channel saw 378K concurrent viewers, an all-time high for the game. 97% of U.S. esports viewers choose to watch competitions on either Amazon’s Twitch or YouTube. The market is difficult for new platforms to enter. The two main players have built up a wide range of video game content over the years, making them the go-to destinations for esports as well. Tweet Share Forward © SuperData Research 12 E 49th Street, New York, NY 10017.

REPORT: Hearthstone's amazing comeback; PUBG overtakes World of Warcraft

August digital market up 11% thanks to F2P MMO Global digital games market grows impressively in August thanks to free-to-play MMO, console, and mobile.  Football season heats up: Madden NFL 18 beats predecessor out of the gate.  PLAYERUNKNOWN’s Battlegrounds continues to dominate premium PC game sales, despite still being in Steam Early Access. PUBG is the number 1 premium PC game for the 3rd month in a row and has overtaken World of Warcraft in the total PC games rankings. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft reaches all-time high revenues due to their well-received and unique expansion, titled Knights of the Frozen Throne. The worldwide digital video games market grew 11% year-over-year in August to $7.9B. The premium PC segment shrank 10% year-over-year, despite PUBG’s breakout success, due to tough comparisons against No Man’s Sky release and Overwatch’s first event and new map last year. Social and pay-to-play MMO segments continue to decline at a rate of 4% and 25% respectively. Console and mobile grew 11% and 13%, respectively. The free-to-play MMO market was the big winner this month, growing 28% year-over-year, as more publishers and developers adopt this business model. Read more...

See the full analysis here

Free-to-Play drives U.S. digital growth. In the U.S., digital games revenue grew year-over-year. This growth was underpinned by a rise in free-to-play digital revenue. This more than offsets the decline in pay-to-play, which was down on a difficult comparison against World of Warcraft: Legion last year. PLAYERUNKNOWN's Battlegrounds sales accelerate in August. PUBG had another successful month, bringing total life-to-date sales close to 9 million units through August. Hearthstone hits all-time revenue peak with "Knights of the Frozen Throne" expansion. Blizzard’s CCG reached a new high this month. This marks a 15% increase over their previous peak. Overwatch PC monthly active users reach new highs due to successive updates. On the back of a string of updates that introduced a new character, two new game modes, and the return of the “Summer Games” event, Overwatch recorded its highest MAU yet. Madden NFL 18 sells over 220,000 digital units at launch. Sales were up compared to last year's launch month units for Madden NFL 17. We also estimate modest additional content growth on the back of new in-game DLC packs available this year.

Digital Console: Additional Content in Today's Market View Report: Virtual Reality Consumers and the Market  View

HEARTHSTONE ODDS