Verizon’s Chief Strategy Officer: ‘5G could fuel esports’
Verizon has been very active in all things gaming and sports, from providing 5G coverage in numerous NFL stadiums and basketball and hockey arenas, to working with Google to offer cloud gaming. Now, the operator is making moves in the esports arena via a partnership with professional esports organization Dignitas to launch the nation’s first 5G esports training facility, the Verizon 5G Gaming Center in Verizon’s 5G Lab in Los Angeles.
The partnership will establish a 5,500-square-foot training facility that will serve as Dignitas’ west coast headquarters and home to its League of Legends teams. Dignitas’ 2019 World Championship-qualifying team will train exclusively at this facility and compete in the League Championship Series.
Verizon and Dignitas will work together to identify and develop ways that Verizon’s 5G network can enhance a number of areas within esports such as player performance, recovery, and the connection between players and fans.
In a press release, Nicki Palmer, chief product development officer at Verizon commented, “We’re thrilled to partner with the largest ownership group in esports and have our LA Lab be home to the nation’s first 5G esports training facility. With 5G’s fast speeds, high bandwidth and low latency, players will be able to do things like stream high-quality gameplay essentially in real-time, stay connected with fans on-the-go, and experience console quality multi-player gaming on their phones.”
“Partnering with a world-class innovator like Verizon brings immense new opportunities,” said Michael Prindiville, CEO of Dignitas. “The technologies we are collaboratively building will help us strengthen support for our current and future partners far beyond today’s capabilities. We are honored to be Verizon’s trusted guide into esports and look forward to telling engaging stories through content, social media and experiences in ways esports has never seen before.”
Verizon’s Chief Strategy Officer, Rima Qureshi told Reuters earlier this week that the throughput and latency of 5G could fuel the esports industry and transform user experiences in esports, gaming and live sports viewing.
