Major League Gaming got another $7.5 million from one of its venture capital firms, which called the pro video gaming league “a cultural phenomenon.”
I don’t know MLG’s financials but, usually, you don’t get another round of funding because you’re insanely profitable. At least it’s from one of MLG’s original partners, Oak Investment Partners, which gave them $25 mil back in 2006. But it is growing — even if the three- and four-figure growth percentages it quotes mean it was starting with comparatively small numbers.
Here is MLG’s full press release. Note the leet online broadcast audience growth:
Major League Gaming, the professional video game league, announced it has received a $7.5 million follow-on investment from Oak Investment Partners. MLG’s explosive growth in online and live audience, as well as its continued success in attracting major sponsors, has made it the premier competitive video gaming property in winner55 the world.
“MLG has become a cultural phenomenon, and the management team has made competitive gaming really matter for pros, fans, and marketers,” said Ed Glassmeyer, managing partner, Oak Investment Partners. “We have great confidence that the company will continue this path to success and that the challenging economic environment will provide new opportunities for investment and growth.”
“We set out to build the first digital sport the world had ever seen. From the beginning, Oak has been there to provide the capital and expertise to enable us to create a global, cross-platform business to support that vision,” said Matthew Bromberg, president and CEO of Major League Gaming.
2008 was a breakout year for Major League Gaming as its sports media business saw triple- and-quadruple digit growth:
• u31 1337% year-over-year growth in its online broadcast audience, with 503,000 unique men under 30 watching the Dallas Playoffs in early October
• 4.4 million online matches played in 2008, up 625% over 2007
• 7.0 million unique users each month according to Google Analytics, u31 com up 109% over 2007
• An average of 15,000 attendees at each of the live competitions in 2008, up 500% over 2007.
Major League Gaming
Founded in 2002, Major League Gaming (MLG) is the dominant media property exclusively targeting the approximately 40 million consumers in North America who have a passion for playing video games as a competitive social activity. The company exclusively represents the best professional gamers and gives millions of aspiring gamers around the world an opportunity to compete, improve their skills, and socialize through our thriving online competitive community and live Pro Circuit competitions. MLG sponsorship partners include Dr Pepper, GameStop, HP, Old Spice, Ballpark, Panasonic, Stride, Ubisoft, Bungie and Xbox 360. For more information: www.mlgpro.com.
Major League Gaming Secures Additional Funding [Daily Games News]