Plays.tv has raised $15 million (£12m) in Series A funding with some famous names involved in the financing.
Plays.tv, which was founded by esports icon Dennis Fong, is ‘a platform for players to record, replay, and relive their games’.
The financing round was led by Shasta Ventures and includes an investment fund associated with the owners and executives of the San Francisco 49ers, basketball star Jeremy Lin, Accel Partners, Tenaya Capital, DAG Ventures and Founders Fund.
Lin stated: “Similar to watching game tape after NBA games, I love how Plays.tv allows gamers to analyse their own replays. This enables players to identify what’s working and what can be improved. I’m excited to see the pros continue to transform their game with tools like Plays.tv.”
The company has stated that it will use the investment to grow the platform and roll out new features. CEO Fong had this to say: “Plays.tv grew very quickly since its launch and our community really embraced the platform not just for the social sharing but for replaying and improving as players. With Shasta and our other investors, we are in a great position to make Plays.tv the most personal and relevant source of gameplay content, and the de facto platform to replay and share videos to get better at your game.”
A number of big names, from players to teams, in the NBA seem to be investing in esports in some form right now but most have gone down the team route. Those from the NFL world meanwhile have been a little quieter, though rumours sprung up recently that the Dallas Cowboys are looking to sign a team. NBA pro Jeremy Lin and NFL side the San Francisco 49ers meanwhile have opted for an alternative to involving themselves in a team.
Brano Perkovich, Chief Investment Officer, San Francisco 49ers commented: “Plays.tv is as essential to gamers as reviewing tape is to NFL coaches. We believe Plays.tv can become a tool that PC gamers can’t live without.”
Plays.tv is used by both professionals at the highest level and amateurs too. Andy Dinh, General Manager and Owner of Team SoloMid (TSM) gave it a thumbs up: “Plays.tv is our most important training tool. Our players use Plays.tv after every match to replay and analyze their mistakes. It’s super easy to use, and anyone who likes to play games can get better like a pro.”
As for new features on the platform Plays.tv has stated that it will continue to improve the personalisation of users’ feeds to offer the most relevant gaming content based on many factors, including a player’s gaming history, champion pool, favourite roles, favourite maps, and skill level.
We interviewed Fong back in December 2016 and you can read what he had to say here.
Esports Insider says: Plays.tv is an excellent platform for helping players to assess themselves and for coaches to do the same. With this major investment one would assume that this platform as an analytics tool can only improve, and in doing so lift esports as a whole.