Pokimane announced as Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of talent management startup ‘RTS’
This also makes her co-owner of the Evolution Championship Series which is a part of RTS' latest acquisition with Sony
Twitch personality Imane "Pokimane" Anys has around 30 million followers across the internet. Though live streaming is her forte, she's now set her sights on a brand new challenge in gaming. RTS, which stands for Real-Time Strategy, is a new talent management company lead by several industry veterans. Pokimane will serve as the Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer and set her sights on changing the relationships between brands and creators. RTS has previously worked with Epic Games, PUBG, Riot Games and PlayStation.
In addition to their focus on creators, the company will also co-manage the Evolution Championship Series. The news was announced back in March as a joint venture between Sony Interactive Entertainment and RTS. Pokimane will hold a stake in Evo's operations as Co-Founder and CCO. Evo is one of the longest-running tournaments in esports. They focus on fighting games such as Tekken 7, Mortal Kombat 11 and Guilty Gear Survive.
Pokimane aims to "fix the gaming industry" with a talent management company that puts the creators' best interests first
The company has its sights set on fixing the industry's biggest issues as they relate to creators. Pokimane aims to use her past experiences as a creator to help build the creative business model of RTS. “I keep seeing amazing creators that are doing wonders with their content and streams," she said on a recent company blog post, "but they don’t have the support to grow their brand and business operations." She went on to say, "They’re spinning their wheels on basic stuff and taking a lot of frustrating partnership deals that don’t work out for either party involved.”
The gaming industry has seen massive growth in recent years. As outside brands began to set their sights on gaming, many creators notice how difficult it can be to strike a good deal. Pokimane has been streaming on Twitch since 2013. She knows what its like on the inside, hammering out deals with brands and navigating the pitfalls of the industry. "My goal is to take my years of experience," she says, "and make it accessible to newer creators so they don’t need to go through the process I have endured.”
Industry veterans like CEO Stuart Shaw, a former Twitch executive, and COO Kim Phan, formerly of Blizzard, are helping lead the charge for change in the industry. Alongside Pokimane's expertise, RTS is hoping to "reinvent talent management" for gamers and bring a more long term approach to creators' successes.