Activision Blizzard Now Has a New Esports Division

It will be run by former ESPN and MLG heads.

Activision Blizzard has announced a brand new division focused entirely on esports. To help them run it, the publisher has recruited former CEO of ESPN and the NFL Network Steve Bornstein as chairman, and Mike Sepso the co-founder of Major League Gaming as as senior vice president.

"Last year, Activision Blizzard created entertainment that was viewed and played by over 150 million people for more than 13 billion hours – this dwarfs the engagement that fans spend on all other sports," Bornstein said in a statement. "I believe esports will rival the biggest traditional sports leagues in terms of future opportunities, and between advertising, ticket sales, licensing, sponsorships and merchandising, there are tremendous growth areas for this nascent industry. I’m excited to help Activision Blizzard further its leadership position in this exciting growth area."