FRNKF - Torque Esports Surges on Microsoft Deal
Torque Esports (TSXV:GAME,OTCQB:MLLLF) is teaming up with one of gaming’s largest names as a part of a brand new esports broadcasting deal.
Through its recently acquired subsidiary, UMG Media, the esports tournament firm told investors on Monday (February 3) that it has signed a deal with Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Xbox Game Studios to operate and broadcast the Gears 5 Esports Challenger Series Finals.
Since the beginning of the trading day on Tuesday (February 4), Torque shares had soared 25.9 percent to US$2.55 as of 10:49 a.m. EST.
As a part of the agreement, UMG will broadcast the Gears of War tournament, which began in late January, in North America and Latin America.
Torque CEO Darren Cox said in a press release that the deal highlights UMG as an avenue to lock down new partners for the firm.
UMG itself has been building its presence in the online Gears of War broadcasting space over the last year, Torque said, having used its online platform to broadcast games for Gears of War 4, the previous instalment in the franchise, and Gears 5, the current instalment, to over 2.2 million gamers worldwide.
According to Roddy Adams, director of partnerships at Microsoft, this previous broadcasting for Gears of War made the partnership more attractive from the company’s perspective.
“Our goal is to create a home to showcase the up-and-coming talent in our game through this weekly stream,” said Adams. “Their group possesses the background knowledge and expertise to make this broadcast a success for our players and viewers.”
UMG also hosts competitive gaming competitions for other popular titles like Fortnite, Call of Duty, NBA 2K20 and Madden 20. The company has generated over 20 million views and has paid out more than US$3 million in prize money.
The Microsoft deal comes a few months after Torque announced in November that it was entering a three way combination company with Frankly (TSXV:TLK,OTCQX:FRNKF) and WinView to create an integrated news, gaming, sports and esports platform.
The deal for the combined firm, to be called Engine Media Holdings, is currently expected to close before the end of the first quarter of 2020.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Danielle Edwards, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.