Activision Blizzard is reportedly considering tripling the franchise fee for organisations looking to get a team in the next season of the Overwatch League.

As reported by ESPN, the company has already stated that the price will increase from the $20 million fee for the league's first season. Sources have claimed that the expected price range is between $35 million and $60 million.

It has been suggested that this higher entry fee could turn-off international investors, which may see the US-based tournament as a high-risk opportunity. Only three teams in the league's first season weren't based in the US, and two of them were owned by North America-based organisations.

Starting strong

However, the higher asking price may not be so unreasonable following the first season's success. Over ten million viewers tuned in to watch during the league's first week, with a peak of 437,000 viewers on day one.

The continued success of Overwatch and other long-standing Blizzard titles mean that the developer made more money than ever in 2017 and didn't release a single new game. As a whole, Activision Blizzard generated over $1 billion from in-game purchases alone for the year.