Nexon Lowers Entry Barriers for eSports Tournaments

'Nexon Arena' to Conclude Operations on July 31

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] Nexon announced on the 5th that it will develop a new eSports business encompassing both online and offline areas to expand the domestic eSports base.

Nexon plans to expand eSports into the online domain, moving beyond the dedicated stadium "Nexon Arena," which has served as the hub for its eSports business. The company intends to open up popular game intellectual properties (IPs) to support grassroots eSports tournaments and lower entry barriers so that teenagers, college students, and office workers can easily participate in competitions.

As part of activating open leagues, Nexon held the high school competition "High School FIFA" for the online soccer game "FIFA Online 4," which received great response. Building on this momentum, Nexon is preparing a nationwide tournament project for the mobile racing game "KartRider Rush+."

Additionally, Nexon will support various organizations such as universities, workplaces, and clubs to utilize its major IPs for their own leagues. The company plans to play a role in disseminating its accumulated know-how in eSports league operations to both public and private sectors. To this end, Nexon is reviewing plans to operate small-scale online tournaments year-round targeting PC bangs nationwide in cooperation with its subsidiary NmediaPlatform.

Meanwhile, Nexon Arena will cease operations as of July 31. The regular eSports leagues previously held at Nexon Arena will have their direction newly established considering the characteristics and scale of each tournament, and will be operated distinctively to highlight the individuality of each league.

Kim Se-hwan, head of Nexon's eSports team, said, "We have plans to diversify the eSports business structure by emphasizing expansion, cooperation, and openness to lead the evolved eSports industry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.