Sliver.tv raises $9.8M to make eSports spectating less passive

Twitch and YouTube Gaming have reigned supreme in the eSports viewing space, but the services have struggled to find ways to make the action of watching other people play video games into a more interactive experience.

Sliver.tv is bringing 360-degree views to traditional 2D eSports PC content via their patented technologies which gives viewers courtside seats to the match, allowing them to change their perspectives and determine where they want to direct their attention.

The team of 16 has been hard at work after signing onto streaming a package of 14 eSports tournaments. One of the latest tournaments they covered brought 340k viewers onto their network across supported platforms on mobile, PC and virtual reality.

Today, Sliver.tv announced that it has closed a $9.8 million Series A round of funding led by Danhua Capital along with Heuristic Capital Partners and ZP Capital. DCM, Sierra Ventures, The VR Fund, Samsung Next Fund and Sony Innovation Fund also got in on the round.

The company really transforms the way viewers watch eSports, allowing them to jump between 360-degree “camera locations” placed inside game maps so they can observe battles as a third-party spectator position rather than just from a player’s point-of-view. It’s a totally different experience and one they’re constantly shaping with more interactive methods of camera-switching during live eSports events.

In July, the company launches its Watch & Win platform which brings a sort of virtual betting to the platform via in-game coins.

CEO Mitch Liu says that the bulk of users are still watching on desktop given that PC titles are still the main driver of eSports. That being said, Liu said about twenty percent of spectators at a recent event were watching from virtual reality.

Sliver.tv is focusing its efforts on the top couple eSports titles right now, Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) and League of Legends which have audiences of tens of millions each.

The startup’s next eSports tournament they’re working on is the DreamHack Masters Counter Strike tournament in Malmö, Sweden at the end of the month.