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During the pandemic, LG saw sales of electronics and home appliances soar as people stayed home and retreated to their TVs and phones, and many updated their homes with new smart devices.  

Last month, the LG released the highest quarterly earnings in its history. In the first quarter of 2021, it saw $16.90 billion in sales with revenue growing by 27.7% from the same period last year. LG’s OLED TVs, which since 2019 connect with PCs for gaming on large screens, was part of the surge as gaming—and particularly livestreams of gaming content—boomed in popularity.

Now LG is introducing a focus on livestream gaming into its marketing for the first time. This month, the brand kicked off its new year-long “Only on OLED” marketing campaign which marries the two worlds of PC gaming and TV with celebrity showdowns on trendy games like Fortnite and streaming platforms like Twitch.  

“During the pandemic we saw how gaming became a community. It became a source of people connecting. A community that then embraced it as live entertainment,” says Peggy Ang, LG’s head of marketing, on the latest episode of the “Marketer’s Brief” podcast.

The first showdown on May 12 was a 90-minute Fortnite battle between producer and media personality DJ Khaled and actress and model Megan Fox. Fox was pronounced the champion. The entire event was streamed to esports team EvilGeniuses' Twitch channel, which has 34,300 followers; and afterward uploaded to LG’s YouTube channel and LG’s FOMO app, where LG TV owners can also access behind-the-scenes content. Ang says by the time the event was finished, more than 1 million viewers had tuned in to watch the live show.

More showdowns are being scheduled throughout the year, with unexpected pairings of celebrities who are competitive gamers that share chemistry. The campaign, which LG created through its agency partner Opus United, will also deliver sports and movie content throughout the year around star athletes and movie releases.  

Ang says that even as pandemic lockdowns ease up, the company remains bullish about the streaming and gaming marketplace and is doubling down on its messaging and ad spend. LG is determined to make it known that its TV screens are not only perfect for watching, but for gaming too.

“Right now, all this for us, it’s not anymore about capturing market share, it’s about capturing people’s imagination and making sure that they are embracing the technology not for what it’s always been known for, but for what the possibilities are,” says Ang.