eSports Hero, Inc. Raises $1M to Bring the Excitement of Live eSports Events Online with Social Tournament Platform
Expands Leadership Team with Former Sony & Live Gamer Executive
Andrew Schneider as Board Director and Co-Founder
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–eSports
Hero (ESH), a leading eSports company headquartered in New York City
today announced $1M in financing from eSports Mogul – an Australian
based eSports investment Company to further expand its compliant,
skill-based online tournament platform. The platform offers gamers of
all ability levels the opportunity to put their talents to the test and
play for real cash and prizes in head-to-head matchups. Viewers can
watch ESH tournaments globally 24×7 and get involved by crowdfunding
prize pools in support of their favorite players.
The company also announced today the expansion of its leadership team
with Andrew Schneider, a pioneer in digital entertainment and former
Live Gamer, Sony Pictures Digital and NBC executive who joins ESH as
Board Director and co-founder. eSports Hero was founded in 2015 by avid
gamers James Heldridge (CEO), Chris Gonsalves (CFO) and David Krbec
(CTO). eSports Hero has hosted thousands of tournaments since September
2015 for many popular eSports titles. Schneider joins Gernot Abl of
eSports Mogul on the Board.
“ESH is capturing the enthusiasm around competitive gaming by offering
players of all skill levels an outlet to show off their abilities to the
millions of eSports fans around the world,” said James Heldridge,
co-Founder and CEO of eSports Hero. “ESH has become a place for
up-and-coming players who want to be recognized and a favorite
destination for professional players such as Jab, Phonetap and KitKatz
who are looking to expand their tournament play.”
According to SuperData
Research, the global viewership market for eSports has reached over
188 million with a market value of $748M and heading to $2B by 2018. “We
see over a third of eSports fans also competing in an average of four
tournaments every six months, and online platforms offer an easy way to
participate without having to compete in person,” said Joost van
Dreunen, CEO of SuperData Research.
“This investment round and the addition of Andrew to the Board will help
accelerate our mission in several ways,” said Chris Gonsalves, CFO,
eSports Hero. “Andrew’s deep industry experience and monetization
expertise will assist us greatly to add compelling new features to the
platform, expand our partnership capabilities and grow the ESH player
base.”
Schneider co-founded Live Gamer in 2007 helping to usher in the era of
free-to-play games in the United States by providing a rich set of
micro-transaction tools, global payment methods and virtual economy
management expertise. While at Sony Pictures Digital, he pioneered
studio efforts around original broadband programming and user-generated
content creation services. Schneider started his career at NBC
Television Network where he helped bring the network online for the
first time.
“eSports is the most exciting thing to happen to games, entertainment
and media,” said Andrew Schneider, Director of eSports Hero. “The ESH
team are core gamers and have a real passion for the sport. Together we
are well positioned to create the most compelling and authentic
experience for players worldwide.”
ABOUT ESPORTS HERO
eSports Hero, Inc. brings the excitement of live eSports tournaments
online where players of all skill levels can compete for cash prizes,
glory and for the enjoyment of viewers globally. The ESH compliant
games-of-skill platform supports all major eSports titles. The company
is headquartered in New York City.
Contacts
eSports Hero, Inc.
Chris Gonsalves, +1-914-357-0556
chris@esportshero.com
