The past couple of years have reflected gaming’s evolution as a hobby among nerds into a cultural movement in its own right. From Tyler’ Ninja’ Blevins’s world-class Fortnite streaming to Seth “Scump” Abner’s dynamic Call of Duty competitive play, gaming has reached stratospheric heights in popular culture. Gaming organizations such as Matthew ‘Nadeshot’ Haag’s 100 Thieves provide some of the best clothing merchandise in the scene, usually selling out in minutes. The entire media buzz around these stars in the scene is spread across Twitter, Youtube, Instagram, Reddit, and other social media sites and gaming forums. However, the fragmentation of these communities and fans acts as a barrier to eSports’ growth as a whole. Matthew Benson identified the absence of a central media platform in the eSports scene and created eFuse to establish a gaming media nexus. eFuse is a “professional gaming hub for eSports and video games.” The Columbus, Ohio-based startup has raised $1.4 million in its seed round recently.
Social media has superseded mainstream news in shaping the perception of gaming in mass culture. A crazy or hilarious clip streamed on Twitch or cut from a popular YouTube video makes the rounds on the Internet. Twitter is used as a popular medium for gaming personalities to interact with fans and engage in banter with rivals. These platforms have become a patchwork of communicating the latest happenings and viral trends within casual and competitive gaming. However, the current decentralized framework for disseminating gaming information is a double-edged sword.
It’s already tricky for new gaming talent to be discovered, as these platforms are oversaturated with content. There are only so many hours in a day to watch videos or share on social media. The majority of that attention is already directed to familiar Internet personalities and big-time streamers. Plus, for eSports, in particular, it’s challenging to get an overall view of what’s going on in a competitive league through social media platforms alone. The SportsCenter of eSports for centralizing the latest discussion on what’s going on in the scene has not fully emerged yet. Over the past couple of years, the growth of eSports reflects a lucrative opportunity for a name-brand gaming media hub to develop.
Ad revenue is the primary source of income for most media organizations. For eSports, ad revenue looks to be on a healthy upward trajectory. Fortune’s Lisa Segarra reported in March 2019, “U.S. online ad revenue for e-sports, including sponsorships, is expected to grow 25% to a record $178.1 million this year.” The fact that these revenues go directly to competitive teams is evidence that advertisers desire to reach a new eSports audience to sell their products. The lucrative opportunity for a centralized media platform to aggregate the eSports audience for advertisers is there.
Benson and his team at eFuse saw how the absence of a professional hub for eSports limits the scene’s growth overall. eFuse is an eSports media platform that aggregates various gaming sub-communities together as a greater ecosystem. The startup has three main goals: provide a clearinghouse for gaming organizations, grow a diverse, widespread community, and produce partnerships between different entities. Benson understood that these goals could flourish under one centralized digital locale, rather than through the current fragmented eSports community. eFuse has developed its new white-label technology called eRena. “eRena allows advertisers to brand a tournament & measure impact across participants,” says Benson. Through achieving these three goals, the startup aims to create a virtuous cycle between talent and opportunity. New gaming talent now has a more organic and reliable way to be discovered through the platform, and the opportunities to recruit such talent will subsequently migrate to eFuse. eFuse has also recently launched a mobile application as well for smartphone access. If Benson is eventually successful, a mature eFuse may look more like a hybrid of LinkedIn and ESPN for eSports.
Building eFuse into a successful company demands an equally talented team. Benson graduated from Ohio University with a degree in Entrepreneurship. He previously founded SnappyCast, a company focused on providing specialized software for secondary schools. The eFuse CEO also worked at the Ohio Innovation Fund as an investment analyst and an entrepreneur in residence. eFuse’s CTO, Patrick Shuff, earned his Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering from The Ohio State University. Shuff honed his software engineer experience during previous stints at Facebook and Netflix. The two combine to lay the foundation for a throwing gaming ecosystem through eFuse.
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I write extensively on college students’ triumphs and failures in their journeys in entrepreneurship. I graduated from MIT with my Bachelor’s and Master’s in Aerospace
I write extensively on college students’ triumphs and failures in their journeys in entrepreneurship. I graduated from MIT with my Bachelor’s and Master’s in Aerospace Engineering.