Studio 1 looked every bit its age before the demolition crews arrived.
Worn carpets, stained walls, tattered fabric, an unwelcoming darkness.
It was a relic of late-night TV, a location that once entertained a country with appearances from the likes of Frank Sinatra, Joan Rivers, Ronald Reagan and Eddie Murphy.
The famed lot at Burbank Studios, home for decades to “The Tonight Show” starring Johnny Carson, then Jay Leno, and for a brief time, Conan O’Brien, is on to its next act.
Little remains of its past, besides a few oversized holes where jumbo monitors once hung, state-of-the-art equipment at the time.
In its stead is new stadium seating, a grand stage, trophy halls, a merchandise store and plenty of other amenities to showcase Blizzard Entertainment Inc.’s video games and growing business of professional gaming competitions.
“The Tonight Show was here for 40 years, and we saw breakthrough after breakthrough,” Blizzard Esports Business Operations Manager Adam Rosen tells a crowd of about 300, moments after a celebratory toast welcoming them to Blizzard Arena Los Angeles. “It’s only fitting that Blizzard is here and will be leading the next generation of esports breakthroughs.”
Eight months of planning and construction, and millions of dollars in renovations transformed the 50,000-square-foot facility into a global mecca for esports, one of tech’s hottest segments—developments Carnac the Magnificent couldn’t have predicted.
The arena, which occupies studio 1, 3 and 5, can broadcast simultaneous events with its two control and audio rooms, three sound stages and five edit bays.
A private tour, part of opening-night festivities on Oct. 8 for invited media, partners and employees, provided a sneak peek into Blizzard’s continued evolution from a video game publisher to mass media content provider.
The four floors at 3000 W. Alameda Ave. are outfitted with 39 workspaces and offices, dressing and conference rooms; press rooms; observer rooms with glass windows overlooking the competition below; guest lounges and team rooms with plush couches, mini fridges and tables; a green room; shoutcaster room for boisterous announcers and analysts; a concession stand; and hair and makeup rooms, among other features.
Player practice areas mimic those on the live set, down to the regulation 40-inch-wide desks.
“When they go from the practice environment to on-stage, there is no difference,” says Senior Director Global Broadcast Pete Emminger during the 20-minute tour.
One room is dedicated to instant replay, taking in every camera feed on the players and the action. Another is reserved for pregame coverage, analysis, break segments, and post-game wrap-ups.
“This is the first facility in North America that we’re dedicating to esports production,” Rosen told the Business Journal last week.
The site has long been a trailblazer in the entertainment industry. NBC built the soundstage as the first for color broadcasting. Its premier in-color production, aptly named for the year it was established, was “Entertainment, 1955,” a mix of music, comedy, and drama acts.
Years later, the lot was the permanent home for “Days of Our Lives,” “Saved by the Bell,” “Access Hollywood” and other programming.
Now it’s home to the Overwatch League, which kicks off its first season in December. The league based on the smash hit, first-person shooter “Overwatch,” which has grown into a $1 billion business since its May 2016 release, features 12 franchises in Boston, London, Los Angeles, Miami-Orlando, New York, San Francisco, Seoul and Shanghai.
Team owners, which reportedly ponied up as much as $20 million per franchise, include Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke and his son Josh, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Sacramento Kings minority owner Andy Miller, and Comcast Spectacor, the Philadelphia Flyers owner and sports arm of cable giant Comcast.
Esports Unit Grows
On opening weekend, the arena hosted the Overwatch Contenders Season One Playoffs, crowning the top teams in Europe and North America. That was followed by the Hearthstone Championship Tour’s Summer Championship with $250,000 on the line. This week, the venue will host the Heroes of the Storm Global Championship Finals and World of Warcraft Arena Championship, from which top players will move on to the finale Nov. 3 and 4 at Blizzcon, the company’s annual fan fest at the Anaheim Convention Center.
Spectators, according to Rosen, can expect to pay about $15 for daily tickets and around $40 for weekend packages at the arena, a developing line of business for OC’s largest software maker, based on revenue and employees.
Blizzard posted record sales last year of $2.4 billion, up 55% over 2015, and operating income of roughly $1 billion, up 81%. It employs about 2,000 at its iron-gated Spectrum headquarters and more than 4,000 worldwide.
Though esports make up a small part of Blizzard’s revenue today, the publicity from the arena and global competitions could increase its value to the company.
Its growing esports unit has more than 50 dedicated workers and will remain in Irvine, Rosen said.
The division is developing plenty of content, from highlights and recaps to weekly collegiate broadcasts and other amateur events.
“When we look at esports right now, we are producing more content than we’ve ever produced before,” said Rosen, who co-leads Blizzard’s collegiate esports efforts. “Our goal is to have content here almost every single week of the year. We’re very big believers in esports.”
