LOS ANGELES: Global eSports organization Immortals announced Tuesday that Meg Whitman, former CEO of Hewlett Packard and eBay, made a significant investment in the company, her first in eSports, and had been named to Immortals’ board of directors.
Neither the quantum of investment, nor the amount of stake Whitman was being offered, were disclosed.
Whitman joins AEG, Lionsgate, the Milken Family, and Steve Kaplan as major shareholders and members of the company’s board.
Noah Whinston, Immortals’ founder and CEO, said: “We are thrilled to have Meg Whitman join our team. She brings directly relevant, tremendously valuable experience, a global network, and deep, authentic roots in the technology sector. Our entire Board and management team will benefit from her complementary skills, expertise, and relationships, both immediately and over the long term.”
Immortals participates in seven leading eSports titles across three brands. The organization competes in DOTA2 and Super Smash Brothers under its Immortals brand and Clash Royale and Arena of Valor in its recently created Immortals Mobile division. Immortals controls one of two Los Angeles slots in Activision Blizzard’s Overwatch League, the first eSports league to feature geo-located franchises, and owns and operates the Pacific Division Champion Los Angeles Valiant.
In June, Immortals re-launched the Brazilian heritage brand MIBR for its CS:GO team, the most popular and competitively successful CS:GO roster in the world. Over the last 12 months, Immortals has secured sponsorships with several leading global brands including Betway, Game Stop, K-Swiss, LF Gaming, Microsoft, Mountain Dew, Otter Pops, Razer, and Tinder, and has collaborated with Lionsgate and STARZ on content-based partnerships around titles including the feature film Uncle Drew and STARZ Original Series Ash vs. Evil Dead.
Whitman said: “I’ve long been intrigued by eSports, and have been evaluating the space for several years. Immortals, given the vision and capabilities of its founder, engagement and reach of its board, and commitment to building a values-based organization in eSports, represented a unique opportunity for me and my family. eSports is an industry with massive tailwinds and I look forward to playing an active role, and working with the board and management team at Immortals to maximize value in this exciting ecosystem.”
Whitman is currently the CEO of NewTV (working name), a start-up that brings together the best of Silicon Valley and Hollywood to create the first entertainment platform built for easy, on-the-go viewing, “allowing today’s leading studios and creative talent to tell original stories in an entirely new way”.
Prior to her current role, Whitman served as CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise until February 1 and she continues to serve on the board. From 2011 through 2015, she served as president and CEO for Hewlett-Packard. From 1998 to 2008, Whitman served as president and CEO of eBay.
