HITN-TV announced that it has joined forces with UBEAT.TV to host the first ever high schools esport tournament in New York. A group of students representing high schools in New York will meet at HITN’s headquarters in the Brooklyn Navy Yard on Saturday, February 29th to compete. The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Tournament will be live streamed globally via UBEAT.TV, Mediapro Group’s esports multiplatform. This tournament is being produced by Nerd Street Gamers a national company dedicated to powering competitive opportunities for gamers.
“The esports industry is booming. In the last decade we’ve seen esports grow from streamed underground events to worldwide, televised programs,” said Michael D. Nieves, HITN’s president and CEO. “However, we also noticed not enough Hispanic gamers and young women who enjoy video games are participating in this growing sport. That’s why HITN and UBEAT made sure to include young Hispanics and young women with this tournament.”
Data from Ampere Analysis’s consumer polling from Q3 2019 found high profile tournaments have drawn in huge numbers globally. Ampere has discovered that between 5% - 9% of Internet users in developed Western markets typically watch esports on a monthly basis via online streaming services. Interestingly, while the largest global demographic group for eSports was found to be males aged 18-34, audiences were found to be moving away from traditional stereotypes. Ampere calculated that in Q3 2019, 35% of those watching esports in the last month were female, 40% were over 35 and 33% live with young children.
“E-sports for the Mediapro Group is an instrumental part of its strategy in innovation and outreach to reach the gaming community and modern audiences through new contents. Being a part of the first ever esports High School Tournament in New York, alongside our partners at HITN, is a key point to explore in the evolution of our multiplatform content”, said Marta Ruiz director for UBEAT (Mediapro Group).
All the participating high schools in New York are sending their best gamers to this event. These students have been training for months – working on their gaming skills and developing the strategies they’ll need if they want to snatch up the UBEAT trophy for their school. Participating students will also have the opportunity to win a $2,000 grand prize, as well as other prizes including gift cards and custom T-shirts.
The winning school in New York will face the winner of another tournament taking place in Chicago next month. The final tournament between New York City and Chicago will be held in May 2020.