Globe Telecom and MET to Introduce Largest Multi-Title Esports League in the Philippines

MET, Southeast Asia’s #1 esports tournament organizer, has partnered with Globe Telecom, the Philippines’ #1 mobile brand, to produce the Globe Philippine Pro Gaming League (PPGL) 2018. The Globe PPGL 2018 will be a nationwide esports tournament featuring major esports titles across multiple gaming platforms: Dota 2 (desktop), Tekken 7 (console), and a mobile game soon to be announced.

Set to be the largest multi-title esports league in the Philippines, the Globe PPGL 2018 will be a milestone for the country’s esports industry and marks the beginning of a new era of esports entertainment in the country.

“Globe is once again embarking on a pioneering effort. After becoming the purveyor of digital lifestyle and redefining how Filipinos consume entertainment, we are set to put the Philippines on the map of gaming and eSports together with MET by launching Globe PPGL 2018,” said Ernest Cu, President and CEO of Globe Telecom. “We look forward to taking esports to greater heights, and develop world-class esports talents in the country,” added Cu.

The tournament will also be the subject of a first-of-its-kind esports television program produced alongside it. The Globe PPGL 2018 series will be a high-production serialized documentary that delves into the life stories, daily lives, and personal struggles of the players as they progress through the league. The tournament will be broadcast online via livestream while the documentary-style production will air on free television.

With this fresh take on esports entertainment, MET and Globe hope to bring both the spectacle and human elements of professional gaming to a wider audience. The show’s direction and production will cater to both mainstream audiences and existing esports fans. The tournament will also be possible with the help of other representatives from the Philippine esports industry, namely the Mobile Esports Arena and PlayBook Esports.

For MET, the Globe PPGL 2018 is also the evolution of their previous annual esports league, the MPGL. The MPGL ran for eight seasons from 2009 to 2016 over a broad range of esports titles such as Dota 2, League of Legends, CS:GO, and more. As a national league, the MPGL was also a launching pad for the careers of several amateur competitive gamers, creating now-recognized world-class Filipino esports athletes. With the Globe PPGL 2018, MET hopes to not only foster a new generation of professional player hopefuls, but also introduce a wider audience to the excitement and legitimacy of esports.

“The goal is to create the esports legends of the future—hometown heroes and local champions,” says Ronald “Rhom” Robins, Founder of MET and Father of Philippine Esports. “MET has always delivered top-notch events to cater to both pro gamers and esports fans. Now we want to reach a broader, more mainstream audience and show them the incredible appeal and legitimacy of esports.”

With the Philippines internationally recognized as an esports-loving country worldwide due to its passionate gamers and string of successful global esports events, MET and Globe believe that the time is right to bring esports entertainment to the mainstream.

The Globe PPGL 2018 tournament will begin later this 2018 with qualifier tournaments across the country before a live LAN event to determine the grand champions for each game title. The champion of the Dota 2 leg will also advance to a Southeast Asian Dota 2 tournament involving champions of other national esports leagues across the country.

More details will be announced at a later date.

About Globe Telecom

Globe Telecom is a leading full service telecommunications company in the Philippines, serving the needs of consumers and businesses across an entire suite of products and services including mobile, fixed, broadband, data connections, internet and managed services.  Its principals are Ayala Corporation and Singtel who are acknowledged industry leaders in the country and in the region.

For more information, visit www.globe.com.ph.
Follow us on Twitter: @talk2Globe
Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/GlobePH.

About MET

MET is the premier and pioneer esports event organizer in Southeast Asia. From neighborhood tournaments to the Philippine Mineski Pro-Gaming League in 2009, and now, global tournaments such as The Manila Masters, the MET has established itself as an internationally-respected brand in the industry. It continues to be a pioneer in Southeast Asian esports and aims to use a decade of experience to bring only the best events and tournaments to esports audiences.

Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/mineskievents

The Budding Promise of esports Events

We can finally say that esports events are nearing their golden age. Years of tireless efforts from numerous gaming entities has given birth to esports being able to establish itself as a legitimate and sustainable industry. People are witnessing the splendor of esports events, and after the expansion period, esports is experiencing its most successful era yet.

With the stereotypes and negative views on esports, the community is as united as ever in supporting esports to be included alongside the biggest events in sports and entertainment. The community has its own ecosystem that is made up of gamers, viewers, organizers, brands, teams, and other esports related position. So, how promising is the future of esports? Let’s take a look.

The Budding Promise

Statistics by the Financial Times predicted that the esports industry will have an annual revenue of an upwards of $100 billion from all the gaming industry around the world. $693 million of the $100 billion comes from all the esports events that have happened this year, and it is expected to reach an upwards of $1.5 billion by 2020.

Historically, esports did not have a great start. In fact, it reached the point of being chaotic. However, due to the very nature of esports audience, being predominantly teenagers and people below 30, it becomes appealing to both sponsors, advertisers, and investors. The number of sponsors and promoters have increased since the start of esports because it has been proven that esports is an industry that will eventually take the world by storm and the money (which is the most important thing for the investors and sponsors) that esports will garner will only increase in time.

One major example of a huge company that entered the esports scene is Amazon, the massive electronic commerce company. They bought Twitch, a live-video-streaming platform website that most, if not all, gamers use to broadcast their games. Amazon, as the massive company that it is, bought Twitch for $1 billion. The primary reason why Amazon bought Twitch is because the live-video streaming platform has become the favorite platform for gaming enthusiasts to watch and learn from their favorite players.

Of course, with the growing success of esports, there has been some disputing voices. Surprisingly, the primary voices that disagree with the success of esports are the massive gaming companies, Sony and Nintendo. They feel as though the success of esports events and the industry itself is threatening the once powerful empire of console gaming because most of the games played in esports are played on a Personal Computer (PC).

Key Takeaway

The main point that readers should take away from this article is that the esports industry is still a growing plant. It has not yet reached its peak, though it has reached its most successful state as of yet. Nonetheless, it still has a lot of room for improvement and the only thing that can help us see what the esports industry looks like at its best is time.

However, you cannot leave everything to time. Efforts from organizers, promoters, developers, players, team owners, coaches, fans, and enthusiasts are still the main driving force to take the esports industry to the next level.