The rise of electronic sports leagues and gaming content creators, has created opportunities for enterprising gamers as well as investors. Tournaments are getting broadcast on ESPN, live events are drawing tens of thousands -- pre-pandemic, of course -- and creators are monetizing audiences built on platforms such as YouTube, Twitch and Discord.
Two Penn Staters: Seth Mason, founder and chief marketing officer of
The Esport Company, and John Comonitski, creator
“JohnyJ25” on YouTube, share their experiences of turning a passion into profit in this emerging industry.
Mason’s Esport Company has built a 5,000-person amateur e-sports league boasting 13 teams across six states. Additionally, he’s contributing to a revitalization effort in downtown Johnstown, Pa., aimed at turning a vacant, two-story building into a tech and job-training hub.
Comonitski’s JohnyJ25 YouTube channel specializes in helping gamers conquer Zombies gameplay within the popular “Call of Duty” franchise, and has amassed 361,000+ subscribers.
This event is presented by
Innoblue, Penn State’s oldest community of student entrepreneurs, and be moderated by Bill Zimmerman, lecturer in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, and host of the
“Happy Valley Hustle” podcast.
