Presentation
On Tuesday, April 7th, the training session on esports and video game law, led by Pierre-Xavier Chomiac of Sas, concluded for high-level League of Legends esports athletes pursuing their university studies at the Gaming Academy.
Discussions with the players about their projects and the future of video games and their competitions highlighted the achievements of esports in its development over the past few years, as well as the new obstacles it faces in ensuring its long-term viability.
Contributing to efforts to stabilize the sector and professionalize its stakeholders, the law firm PCS Avocat is pleased to support numerous students, professional players and streamers, game publishers, and esports event organizers in their projects.
The legal framework of Esports: a prerequisite for its development
Initiated in 2010 with the economic expansion of esports and the significant work of associations to regulate competitive practices, the French government undertook a study on the regulation of esports, led by two members of parliament, Rudy Salles and Jérôme Durain. This study, entitled “Esports: The Competitive Practice of Video Games,” was completed in March 2016.
This work resulted in the inclusion of Articles 101 and 102 in the Law for a Digital Republic, establishing the first formal legal framework for esports.
While denying esports the status of a sport for various reasons, the legislature incorporated provisions into the Internal Security Code and the Labor Code, allowing video game organizers and professional players to benefit from regulations, notably those derived from the Sports Code, designed to stabilize and improve their activities.
Find out more about the laws and regulations applicable to esports.
- Esports: Not a sport, but a now-regulated “video game competition.”
- Esports: The status of competitive video game players is now legally defined.
The current system, primarily focused on self-regulation, leverages the passion of its participants to complement the regulatory work of video game competitions.
Taking advantage of a certain degree of latitude granted by law, it is up to all professionals in the sector to work together to further develop esports, a genuine opportunity that requires a legal framework, mainly through contracts between professionals, which supports projects and ensures the stability of the industry.
Read our article dedicated to the gradual recognition of esports, its legal framework, and video game competition.
Video game competitions: Careers in Esports
The esports ecosystem comprises a rich variety of profiles. Numerous events are regularly organized to showcase and analyze esports careers. Mr. Nicolas Besombes, Vice-President of the France Esports association, has compiled a comprehensive overview of all the listed esports professions, encompassing nearly one hundred different roles.
In fact, several general and easily identifiable esports professions exist, particularly those related to event management, communications, legal matters, sales, finance, and so on. Alongside these, essential esports professions have emerged:
The professional gamer. Given the fierce competition in this field, the esports player distinguishes themselves from amateurs through the rigor and consistency of their performance, on the one hand, and the endurance required for training, diet, physical and mental preparation, travel, and all the events and activities surrounding their competitive practice, including managing their image and advertising partnerships, on the other.
In short, their passion for video games is inextricably linked to their professionalism and the management of their professional career.
The eSports Manager. Inspired by the organization of traditional sports competitions, many players wishing to focus on their esports performance delegate the organization and administration of their activity to managers who provide daily support, advising players, developing their professional network, promoting their activities, and finding competitions.
Esports Commentators. Streamers, YouTubers, or simply presenters, these individuals are essential to guaranteeing one of the fundamental elements of esports: the audience. Indeed, their role makes competitions more accessible and dynamic, transforming video game competitions into true events. Their knowledge of the game, their personality, and their community all contribute to the event’s success.
A prime example is the Z Event, a video game telethon held last September, which raised over three million euros for the Pasteur Institute. The event brought together stars from YouTube, Twitch and e-sports who played games for fifty-four hours in front of sometimes more than half a million viewers.
Other approaches to Esports, particularly through the lens of professional sectors, allow us to consider the legal issues related to certain professions, for example the question of advertising, the intellectual property of publishers, players and streamers, or the responsibility of the various actors present within a physical or virtual competition.
Esports Law: Self-regulation by stakeholders
Following the initial legislative efforts of the Law for a Digital Republic in 2016, the French government has shown a growing interest in regulating and supporting the development of competitive video gaming. At Paris Games Week 2019 on October 30th, the Secretary of State for Digital Affairs, Cédric O, accompanied by the Minister of Sports, Roxane Marcineanu, presented their “National Strategy for the Development of the Esports Sector.”
Based on the findings of the esports conference organized in the first half of 2019 by the Directorate General for Enterprises (DGE) with the Directorate of Sports (DS) in partnership with the France Esports association, an interministerial roadmap was developed to structure the French esports ecosystem.
The future of esports is fraught with numerous legal challenges that the various stakeholders must address together.
For example, the regulation of video game monetization is a major issue, especially given that innovations from video game publishers have led to some games being reclassified as gambling or lotteries, subject to strict controls by ARJEL/ANJ.
Similarly, the wide variety of competitions, video games, participants, and prize money has fostered illegal practices such as cheating, doping, and match-fixing. These widespread problems in the sports world pose a real threat to the credibility and stability of esports.
Find our articles on this topic:
- Esports & Video Games: The Regulation of Loot Boxes by Game Publishers
- Streamers & Gamers: Esports Riddled with Doping, Cheating, and Match-Fixed Betting
Training professionals: a key issue in Esports
A key innovation in their strategy is the development of a dedicated esports training program.
Through this initiative, the government aims to support and train future players and professionals in the esports sector, notably by implementing training pathways tailored to high-performance esports players at both the pre- and post-baccalaureate levels, as well as by monitoring the evolving training needs of the industry (training for coaches, in-demand professions and skills).
In this context, the law firm PCS Avocat and Pierre-Xavier Chomiac de Sas were delighted to teach and lead several courses and seminars at Gaming Campus Lyon, overseeing more than ten training programs across four schools for future managers, developers and publishers, graphic designers, streamers, and other esports professionals.
Offering several courses focused on the law of new technologies, communication, and advertising, a specific course dedicated to Esports Law reviews the legal framework applicable to the entire sector.
Recent legislation is discussed, as well as a practical approach by industry sector, addressing the specific issues faced by game publishers, professional players, event organizers, streamers and broadcasters, and investors.
Esports Influencers: The Operating Companies Behind the Streamers.
Esports Law: The Legal Approach to Video Game Competitions.
