ReadyUp, an esports and gaming startup for player connection, team management, and fan engagement, has agreed a partnership with the National Basketball Players Association and its wholly-owned commercial arm Think450.
In conjunction with the partnership, ReadyUp, which is currently in beta mode, will launch an esports smart calendar that will seek to act as the comprehensive source to find esports matches, tournaments, and livestreams that include video game fan experiences and media events with NBA players.
NBA players will seed the calendar with their own game livestreaming events that gamers can either watch or join in and play.
Michele Roberts, executive director of the NBPA, said: “Eighty-five per cent of NBA players play video games. The NBPA and Think450 partnership with ReadyUp gives our players an exciting new way to connect with their fans, based on their shared passion for video games and esports while creating new content and distribution channels for our business partners.”
Incremental to the esports smart calendar for fans, ReadyUp’s gamer database and discovery recommendation system will match players based on skill, playing style and compatibility helping players find teams and teams find players.
Team management tools will enable esports competitors to manage their teams so they can focus on competition and player development. Additionally, gamers will be able to monetise their gaming ability by creating content, offering coaching, training, or fan experiences in a marketplace, which will launch in 2019.
Roderick Alemania, chief executive and co-founder of ReadyUp, said: “ReadyUp’s partnership with the NBPA and Think450 reflects the mass market appeal of gaming and the intersection of traditional sports and esports.
“Our smart calendar is not only a complementary product to the partnership, it’s an opportunity to solve a major market need – the issue of fragmentation – by giving the gaming and esports community an easy way to find events across the entire industry, stay engaged with everything they want to watch, and never miss their favourite players and teams.”