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The World Chess Championship Match, to take place in New York in November of 2016, is to be broadcast live in 360° Virtual Reality, a global first for any sport. The VR broadcast of the Match, which will take place between Magnus Carlsen of Norway and his challenger Sergey Karjakin of Russia, will be exclusively available through Worldchess.com.
Ilya Merenzon, the Chief Executive of World Chess by Agon Ltd, the commercial rights holder to the World Chess Championship, said: “We are proud to announce that chess, one of the oldest sports in the world, is creating a global first: a totally new and immersive way of watching a contest that will captivate hundreds of millions of new and existing fans.”
World Chess has teamed up with Livestream to create the unprecedented viewer experience that will place the audience closer to the action than ever before.
As well as the 360° video stream there will be a number of other cameras within the players’ arena to provide multiple angles on the match. The online broadcast will include commentary in multiple languages, with guest appearances from celebrity chess fans, a chess analysis engine so viewers can gain an insight into the players’ strategic decisions, as well as a host of other features. “Everything we are doing is designed to enable viewers to get into the minds of the players. This is the first Chess World Championship for the smartphone generation,” Mr Merenzon added.
The VR broadcast has a stereoscopic mode that allows visitors to use Google Cardboard or similar VR headsets which cost just a few dollars to watch the tournament as if they were sitting right up to the players.
Livestream, the leading provider of live video services, is the broadcasting partner of the Championship Match. A spokesperson for Livestream said: “We are excited to be the streaming partner for the World Chess Championship at a time when the broadcast and overall presentation of the game is being transformed by Agon."
Chess fans can sign up to receive the VR broadcast by registering at www.worldchess.com. A season pass for the 12 round Championship Match will cost $15, or $1.25 per game. [Details on what you get for each package may be found here]. The pay-per-view model with advanced premium features, such as full 360-degree broadcast, is expected to significantly add to the commercial prospects of chess as a global sport and increase its appeal to brand partners.
A basic free live broadcast of the Championship Match will also be available to view. It will include a live representation of the game and will be made available to select broadcasting partners and chess federations that agree to join the World Chess affiliate program. Mr Merenzon said: “We are investing into the 360-degree broadcast because we believe that it is a major commercial opportunity for a sport which has required additional revenue streams to fulfill its global potential.
The millions of dollars in extra revenue that our new model will bring into the game will be re-invested in player prize money, events in the World Chess Championship cycle and in grass roots initiatives.
But we also want to ensure that as many people as possible can follow the Match and recognise that not everyone is prepared to pay to follow the Championship Match – that’s why we will offer a free broadcast as well.” The 360° Virtual Reality broadcast will be available to view by anyone with a smartphone, tablet or computer or VR device.
Magnus Carlsen, the reigning World Champion, said: “In my opinion, chess has the potential to reach and engage a much broader audience than what we see today. To succeed with this, innovation, and most of all quality in the production and transmission, are key elements.”
The full information about the Championship Match broadcast and subscription options is available at worldchess.com/nyc2016 starting September 12.
EG Capital Advisors, the global holding company which, through its subsidiaries, advises the equivalent of over 3 billion USD of assets and provides retail and institutional clients with investment opportunities in multiple asset classes including publicly listed equity securities, private equity, fixed income and real estate, has become the second major sponsor of FIDE World Chess Championship Match 2016 in New York [the first was PhosAgro, as previously reported]. The deal underlines the growing commercial appeal of chess to international business sponsors.
Michael Stanton, Member of EG Capital Supervisory Board and founding partner, said: “I am very proud that EG Capital is becoming part of the story of chess at a pivotal and exciting time in the sport’s development. EG Capital is a very young and fast growing company and the World Chess Championship is the perfect vehicle for us to increase our brand awareness in key markets around the world. Chess is played and followed avidly by over 600 million people worldwide and I look forward to being able to introduce our business to this incredible audience.”
Press conference in Baku on the World Championship Match in New York...
... with FIDE CEO Geoffrey Borg, EG representative Michael Stanton, and AGON Director Ilya Merenzon
Ilya Merenzon, Chief Executive of Agon Ltd, the commercial rights holder to the World Chess brand said: “I am delighted that in EG Capital, an asset manager that shares out commitment to innovation, we have a global partner which shares our vision for the transformation of chess as a global sport.”
Watch this 33-minute video which provides full details of the World Championship plans
EG Capital Advisors provides fixed and customised financial strategies on global and emerging public markets that span major investment classes including equity, fixed-income and multi-asset capabilities. The company also has a thriving private equity business, specialising in pre-IPO finance, small and mid-cap acquisitions and with a particular focus on the fin tech, technology and biotech sectors.
The global business joins PhosAgro, the global fertiliser and nitrates group, as a main sponsor for the eagerly awaited World Chess Championship Match in New York, which is taking place between 11-30 November.
The Match will be held in the Fulton Market Building, a five minute walk from Wall Street, and will also feature dedicated spectator and VIP lounges with panoramic views of the Brooklyn Bridge as well as retail space, a restaurant, TV studios and much more. Full details available in our announcement report.
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