Warner Music Asia inks exclusive deal with Esports Player League (ESPL)

The convergence of the games and music businesses has been hotting up in recent months.

Just last week for example, Sony Group Corporation, parent of Sony Music Group, announced that it was pouring another $200m into Fortnite maker Epic Games after its initial investment of $250m last July.

And in August last year, Spotify signed a multi-year partnership with League of Legends publisher Riot Games to be the official audio streaming partner for League of Legends (LoL) Esports global events.

Today brings more big news from the crossover of these two spaces, as we learn that Warner Music (WM) Asia has inked a deal that will make it the exclusive music partner to prominent gaming platform Esports Player League (ESPL).

In a media statement announcing the deal, Warner Music says that “the investment will serve as an important entry into the gaming industry for WM Asia and, through ESPL’s platform, help bring together the adjoining worlds across gaming and music”.

Singapore-headquartered ESPL, which claims to be the first amateur and casual esports platform in the world, serves more than 600 million gamers globally.

The deal will allow ESPL to embed Warner Music songs into its platform.

In addition, Warner Music says that it will enable “authentic and well-matched brand partnerships” across ESPL’s partners, through to video game publishers, developers and brands.

ESPL organizes esports tournaments through its online platform, mainly focusing on AAA mobile games such as Brawl Stars, Call Of Duty: Mobile, Free Fire, Mobile Legends, and PUBG Mobile, with new titles set to be introduced to the platform later this year.

The company says that it has seen the biggest uptake of its platform across India, South East Asia and Latin America.

“There’s a huge audience crossover straddling gaming and music, and ESPL’s community of grassroot esports players, along with their engaged fans, will help us to bring the two segments together.”

Darren Ho, WM Asia

Darren Ho, SVP Music Entertainment and Partnerships, WM Asia, said: “We’re thrilled to be partnering with ESPL.

“There’s a huge audience crossover straddling gaming and music, and ESPL’s community of grassroot esports players, along with their engaged fans, will help us to bring the two segments together.

“ESPL’s trusted ecosystem will also enable us to deliver an array of new, authentic, and bespoke experiences, with gamers forefront of mind, and we can’t wait for everyone to see and experience them for themselves.”

“Esports is the fastest growing industry in the digital age of entertainment.”

Michael Broda, ESPL

Michael Broda, CEO, and Co-Founder of ESPL, added: “Esports is the fastest growing industry in the digital age of entertainment.

“Warner Music has been active in the ever-changing landscape of today’s world and so this strategic partnership will bring a value proposition to both players and brands across our global network that we are confident will elevate amateur esports to another level.”Music Business Worldwide