Activision Blizzard Partners with Nielsen on Esports Brand Valuation

Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) today announced it is partnering with Nielsen to measure and value esports brand investments across the company’s multiple leagues and titles. 

Nielsen Esports provides trusted data and insights to support key stakeholders investing in the rapidly evolving world of esports.

The deal demonstrates Activision Blizzard’s commitment to its advertisers and third-party verification. As part of the deal, Nielsen will measure brand exposure in esports tournaments representing a variety of Activision Blizzard titles, event formats and geographic locations based on the same methodology that Nielsen uses to quantify value and benchmark performance for traditional sports rights holders and brands.

“As esports continues to mature and reach its potential as a stand-alone business, we’re determined to lead the way and develop best practices for brands and advertisers,” said Pete Vlastelica, CEO of MLG. “We’re excited to partner with the most experienced and respected measurement service in Nielsen, and continue building on our foundation of the best esports leagues in the world.”

“The esports market has so much potential, but is still undervalued by some in the marketplace,” said Nicole Pike, Managing Director and head of esports for Nielsen. “We’re thrilled to be working closely with Activision Blizzard, who has taken initiative in leading the market forward.” 

Nielsen will begin tracking Blizzard Entertainment’s Overwatch League™, Overwatch World Cup and Overwatch Contenders this year, as well as Activision’s Call of Duty® World League, with plans to expand to other programs in the coming year.