Program Directory

 
Columbus Metropolitan Club - 11-28-2018 - Ready Player One - eSports Business and Beyond
 
 
An entire generation of young men (and sometimes women) are changing the social and recreational dynamic by spending vast amounts of their free time glued to screens playing, talking about, and watching others play video games.

The video gaming industry is expected to top $100 billion in the next decade, which is likely no surprise to anyone who has watched TV commercials, visited a department store, or is related to a Millennial/Gen Z male.

eSports - the rapidly growing competitive sport of video gaming - is poised to reach nearly $1 billion next year, with sponsorships, big-ticket competitions, and highly paid athletes. The Luxor in Las Vegas has opened a 50,000 square foot gaming arena and eSports betting (and the subsequent issues of corruption) is becoming a major force to reckon with.

But, if you think this is just for fun, there are ancillary benefits beyond entertainment. Virtual reality, especially, is being applied to more and more real-world applications including physical and occupational therapy, education, and training.

To tackle this fascinating and quickly changing arena, CMC welcomes Chris Volpe (CEO of Multivarious), Deborah Grzybowski (Co-Director of Game Studies and eSports Curriculum Development, Associate Professor of Engineering, The Ohio State University), Justin Kogge (Director of Game Arena), and host Tim Feran (Business Reporter, The Columbus Dispatch). Multivarious will have a virtual reality demonstration available at the forum.
November 28, 2018