Blizzard is expanding its business with the purchase of the IGN Pro League, but not for the sole purpose of growing its eSports division. The company plans to use the newly acquired tech and staff to build out its mobile and web content.

"This new team will help us to further develop the rich media experiences that extend the fun and engagement of our games online," said Itzik Ben-Bassat, Blizzard’s executive vice president of publishing. "This is a team of passionate gamers with a proven track record, and we're looking forward to now leveraging their expertise and technology to support a variety of online efforts."

Some members of the IPL team have already been folded into Blizzard's eSports group. The rest of the team will be part of a new group based in San Francisco. The company told IGN that it had "no plans to continue operation of the IPL business."