Game|Life has word (corroborated seconds ago by the WSVG home page) of the end of an era in gaming: the shuttering of the World Series of Video Games. We've brought you news on the WSVG's ventures before, from their dealings with major television entities to ... actually that's it. I just went through our entire archives and aside from that whole thing with CBS, and the assumption that they had some events at some point, we don't really remember them having done much. I suppose that's sort of the point isn't it?

According to the G|L piece:

Competitions were scheduled for Los Angeles, London, and Sweden, but due to "the continuing challenges of securing adequate revenues to sustain the production of the WSVG's large scale events and television programming," they've all been canned.

Anyone who competed and won will still get paid, however, once "the requisite paperwork is completed."

I will give them points for not ripping off naïve children who were merely seeking a way to make their fortune without actually having to work for it, but otherwise I can't say I'm going to be weeping about this. I will however, posit the following: is the collapse of WSVG the death knell for those seeking to turn gaming into the new NBA -- or more accurately, the new WNBA -- or is this merely the failure of a company plagued by issues unrelated to its product?

Hit the jump for the just added public announcement courtesy of the WSVG website.

WORLD SERIES OF VIDEO GAMES CANCELLED

Effective immediately, Games Media Properties will no longer produce the World Series of Video Games.  The remainder of the 2007 season in Los Angeles, London and Sweden is cancelled.

The World Series of Video Games launched with the goal of expanding interest and participation in competitive gaming.  Over the course of two seasons, we have been honored by the strong support the community has shown in attending our festivals, and watching our competitions online and on television-- all in record-setting numbers.  We have been grateful for the generous support provided by Intel and other sponsors since our inception. 

However, the continuing challenges of securing adequate revenues to sustain the production of the WSVG's large scale events and television programming, in a very crowded field of competitive gaming leagues, has prompted us to re-evaluate our direction as an organization.

Unfortunately, the decision is to cancel the remainder of the WSVG season, as we shift our focus solely to growing our online advertising network of websites, which currently reach seven million users each month. 

We are proud of the accomplishments and memorable entertainment we have provided through the World Series of Video Games.   While we are sorry that this news will disappoint our fans and players, we are deeply appreciative that we have had the opportunity to contribute to the growth of eSports.