Esports business site The Esports Observer has been acquired by Condé Nast and American City Business Journals owner Advance Publications. American Business Journals is the publisher of Sports Business Journal, which has a minority stake in The Esports Observer.
From the acquisition, The Esports Observer is expected to “offer its audience greater access to even more granular data in the business of esports and games,” according to the press release. Advance’s recent majority acquisition of industry intelligence and analytics firm Newzoo will help drive that initiative.
“Since our original investment in The Esports Observer last year, TEO has been key to helping us and our audience gain a better understanding of the broader esports business,” Sports Business Journal co-founder and CEO Whitney Shaw said in a statement. “We see significant long-term potential in esports, and TEO helps us serve professionals in the business of esports, just as we’ve served traditional sports executives for more than 20 years.”
Advance intends to serve industry professionals across sports, games, and esports. TEO’s involvement in esports business events, beyond the publication, is expanding with the acquisition to connect and teach professionals, both endemic and non-endemic.
“The Esports Observer’s model consisting of content, real-time data, and events complements the model ABJ follows for traditional sports,” The Esports Observer CEO Chris Hana said. “Everyone at SBJ, Leaders, American City Business Journals, and Advance have been great to work with and an inspiration. We have no doubt this acquisition will lead to accelerated growth, faster global expansion, and significant opportunities for collaboration.”
