• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, November 18, 2013

Major League Gaming -- the media company that specialized in “eSports,” i.e., video games -- is rolling out a new Web presence this week.
 
For the site, MLG will be producing its own lineup of eSports programming, the majority of which consists of professional games playing video games.
 
Along with streaming league tournaments like the upcoming MLG Championship in Columbus, Ohio, the company has unveiled new shows like “eSports Report,” which will stream Thursday nights.
 
To further formalize a still-emerging competitive gaming industry, MLG is pushing appointment viewing with a programming schedule, which mirrors a live TV viewing experience.
 
MLG has also opened its platform to gaming world royalty like Call of Duty team OpTic Gaming, and Gfinity -- one of Europe’s foremost eSports leagues. Both partners will be expected to produce event-driven, regularly scheduled programming on the new MLG.TV network.
 
In beta testing, the new site experienced a roughly 1,000% increase in video consumption over a two-week period -- while maintaining a 95% fill rate in advertising, according to internal data.
 
MLG executives attribute the new network's early success to its high-definition video player, the new partnerships, and a new Twitter-driven chat feature.
 
“Based on years of research and first-hand experience with other streaming solutions, we built a platform from the ground up,” Sundance DiGiovanni, co-founder and CEO of MLG, stated.
 
Worldwide, a jaw-dropping 700 million consumers will spend some time playing online games, this year, per comScore.
 
Outdoing the most optimistic projections, the gaming industry continues to post staggering revenue gains. Last year, DFC Intelligence said it expected the global market for videogames, including online and console, to grow from $67 billion in 2012 to $82 billion in 2017.