Twitch gets Overwatch League rights
Streaming platform signs deal for exclusive third-party rights for regular season and playoffs outside of China for next two years
With the Overwatch League inaugural season kicking off tomorrow, Twitch today announced that it has struck a two-year deal to be the exclusive third-party provider for the league in every region except China. The deal covers the first two seasons of Overwatch League, including regular season, playoffs, and finals, and will see Twitch stream the competition in English, Korean, and French.
"The Overwatch League is making a major impact on esports by reshaping the industry with city-based teams," said Twitch COO Kevin Lin. "Given Overwatch's consistent reign as a top viewed game by our community, we look forward to offering their pioneering style of league play to a large and passionate fanbase that will be able to bond over not only their favorite plays, but hometown pride."
This deal expands on the pre-existing agreement Twitch has with Overwatch developer Blizzard. Last year, the company secured exclusive third-party platform rights for an assortment of Blizzard tournaments running through the end of this year, including the Heroes of the Storm Global Championship, StarCraft II World Championship Series, Hearthstone Championship Tour, and more.