For the first time, charities, bars, restaurants, online video streamers and anyone else can organize, host, and stream eSports tournaments in any Skillz enabled game.

Skillz, the worldwide leader in mobile eSports, has introduced a new live events platform that allows anyone to organize mobile video game competitions and live-stream them to any Internet connected device. With the new technology, bars, restaurants, non-profits and virtual venues can run their own free or cash-prize eSports tournaments in over 500 mobile games. The competitions can be geolocated to a specific venue or can be made available to anyone who has downloaded the game. Organizers can also generate and distribute passwords for invite-only competitions.

Skillz unveiled the live events platform at last week’s Wedbush/Intel E3 Networking Event at Elevate Lounge in Los Angeles. Guests were invited to compete for iPads, plane tickets and other prizes in a live eSports tournament, and all entry fees benefited Child’s Play, a charity that donates video games and toys to children in over 70 hospitals worldwide.

“With the live events platform, Skillz can transform any physical or virtual venue into a competitive arcade,” said Andrew Paradise, CEO of Skillz. “This is exciting for gamers looking for new ways to compete and for venues interested in engaging their patrons. This technology is also incredibly powerful for game developers interested in tapping into a physical distribution network of bars and restaurants to drive new downloads and increase engagement and retention among existing players.”

In the week since the inaugural event at E3, Skillz has already received interest from hundreds of bars, restaurants and Twitch.tv streamers who want to host their own competitions. The company is currently accepting beta partner applications from venues and charities interested in hosting events, and will be making the technology broadly available this summer. Venues interested in participating in the beta program should contact affiliates@skillz.com.

The live events platform is currently patent pending, and includes the following features:

• Self-service tournament configuration
• Free or paid-entry competitions
• Public or invite-only events
• Geolocated competitions for specific venues or tables within a venue
• Competitions with either cash or physical prizes
• High definition live streaming and instant replays
• Customizable video broadcasting for any Internet connected device
• Real-time leaderboards

About Skillz

Skillz is the worldwide leader in mobile eSports. Skillz has hosted more than 40 million mobile eSports tournaments for players in over 180 countries. More than 1,100 game studios use the Skillz platform, which pays out roughly $1 million in cash prizes to players every two weeks. The company believes in making mobile games more fun and competitive for players while making game creation more lucrative for developers. Skillz eSports tournaments create direct revenue for game developers while enhancing rather than interrupting the gamer experience. Founded in 2012, Skillz has offices in San Francisco and Boston, and the company has raised $13.3M in funding led by Atlas Venture. To learn more, visit  www.skillz.com.