Last week, esports attorneys Scott Norcross and Paige Rabatin from KJK’s Esports, Media & Entertainment group attended the 2021 Esports Business Summit (EBS) in Las Vegas, Nevada. The EBS took place over three days and included guest speakers, breakout sessions and the 2021 Tempest Awards ceremony. Norcross and Rabatin recount some of their EBS highlights below.
Keynote Speakers included NRG’s Daequan and Hamlinz who shared the planned next steps in their careers, including In Real Life (IRL) video content of themselves and their friends. Daequan and Hamlinz detailed how their long-lasting gaming careers have allowed a shift into broader content that their audiences want to see.
Extended workshop sessions occurred on day one and kicked off with a select number of EBS attendees being bussed to the new Allegiant Stadium for “Brand Camp,” sponsored by Twitch, in the Stadium’s Twitch Lounge. Rabatin attended Brand Camp which included presentations from major companies such as Bud Light, Tyson, Jack Link’s and the United States Army and Air Force, with all addressing their reasons for joining and successes within the gaming space. The workshop concluded with a guided behind-the-scenes tour of Allegiant Stadium.
Shorter breakout sessions occurred across all three days and included detailed panel discussions such as, “Athletes Want to be Gamers, and Gamers Want to be Athletes,” “Esports Betting” and “Comcast G4 Studios and the Esports Venues of the Future.” Norcross attended the Esports Betting breakout which particularly focused on steps toward legalization and the state trends in adoption of esports and traditional sports wagering.
The second night concluded with the 2021 Tempest Awards held at the HyperX Arena, hosted by Rachel “Seltzer” Quirico. Winners spanned a broad range of categories and included major names such as EA and Riot, along with teams like XSET. Gillette, which spoke previously in the week at Brand Camp, went home as Brand of the Year. Dan Gilbert’s 100 Thieves laid claim as Team of the Year, and Columbus, Ohio-based Esports Engine won the award for Innovation During the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Norcross and Rabatin strengthened existing relationships in the gaming world at the Esports Business Summit and formed new ones to open doorways for future projects and collaborations.