After several video game licensing partnerships failed to bear much fruit, ESPN now says it has the right combination with Sega, whose "2K" game series is being repackaged to make ESPN the prominent brand of the "ESPN Videogames" series.
The multiyear Sega partnership was struck last year, but the partnership was expanded in June. This year's games will be the first to carry the ESPN moniker in the title, such as "ESPN NFL Football" and "ESPN College Hoops." The reworked deal includes a higher royalty percentage for ESPN — the exact number was not available — but calls for more promotion across all ESPN platforms.
The brand has been promoted even before the first game, the NFL game, comes out in September. ESPN.com's Motion section presented an MLB All-Stars vs. All-Star Snubs simulation game around the league's All-Star Game, and it was covered on "SportsCenter" like a regular game. ESPN.com and ESPN Videogames were co-presenters.
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| This year’s Sega sports games will move ESPN’s brand into the big print. |
"We found the strength of our brand was so strong, it made sense to incorporate the brand more significantly in the games," said Rick Alessandri, senior vice president and general manager of ESPN Enterprises. "Sega and [its subsidiary] Visual Concepts came to us, actually, and said they'd like to raise the profile of ESPN within the series."
Alessandri would not disclose market share or unit sales of the 2K games last year. In the sports segment, Electronic Arts' EA Sports games have nearly two-thirds of the market share in the traditional (non-extreme) sports, with the rest divvied up among six or seven competitors. EA's "Madden" NFL series has a reported a similar market share among football titles.
One analyst suggested the Sega/ESPN partnership won't put a dent in EA's lead.
"They're just going up against an absolute powerhouse," said Shawn Milne, an analyst at Witt SoundView. "ESPN being on the cover is just not going to turn the tide. And EA also has a huge advantage in online gaming."
Visual Concepts senior vice president Steven Raab countered that the aim isn't necessarily to take business from EA but to "take care of our own business" by using ESPN media to tap into new generations of players, especially youngsters.
"You see the same thing at work with ESPN Magazine. It's about the product having a different feel, attitude and focus," he said.
All new ESPN releases this year will include "First Person," the ability to see the action through the eyes of any player on the field, and "The Crib," in which game players can amass virtual goods, like flat-screen televisions, furniture and electronic equipment, to outfit a virtual apartment.
Several ESPN announcers will provide voice-overs, including Chris Berman for the NFL game, and Gary Thorne and Bill Clement for the NHL offering.
ESPN has had licensing deals in the past with game makers Konami, Radical and Sony, but characterized them as much less ambitious.
