We Co, the parent company of WeWork, have been working silently on an electronic gaming project.
The company has launched fitness with Rise By We, co-living with WeLive and education with WeGrow, the startup company that has lost a lot of money is now seeking a trademark Play by We, from an application published in the Intellectual Property Office last week. The company has also hired some handful of staff for the work but the details about the project are private
The company has not decided on the fate of the employees or the decision about the early stages of the business is not discussed. As of now, WeWork is planning on cutting off, thousands of jobs as the company wants to cut down on its loss and work with the right size of people for the operations to improve profit. Last week,WeWorkaccepted a rescue packet of $9.9 billion from theSoftBank Groupa Japanese company, as it is the biggest shareholder in the company.
The trademark application Play by We offers entertainment services that will help in providing online professional and competitive video games. It will also include games, tournaments, exhibitions and conduct contests. The application also give hints regarding some facilities regarding the conference, video gaming events, and trade exhibitions that naturally shared the office space.
The company has been keeping this project a secret for quite some time now but due to the posting of two jobs on LinkedIn shared some information on it.
The job was for content and experience management as the company was looking for a person who can help them with the engagement with the players and professional gamers along with the gaming community. The candidate should help the company to integrate their program in such a way that it can become a part of the esports games.
Peter Beaumont is a senior reporter on the Guardian’s Global Development desk. He has reported extensively from conflict zones including Africa, the Balkans and the Middle East and is the author of The Secret Life of War: Journeys Through Modern Conflict. Email: peter@thehearus.com