Esports Audiences Surge, but Better Audience Data Needed for TV Deals

On Tuesday afternoon, on the sidelines of the E3 games conference, a crowd of fans is expected to flock to a soccer stadium in Los Angeles to watch a group of professional gamers and celebrities competing against each other in Fortnite, the wildly popular online battle game. Many more will watch a livestream of the tournament on the internet.

Esports is emerging rapidly as a credible alternative to traditional sports. But it lags significantly behind them in one way that really counts: money from streaming video and television.