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So with the newly announced PPV event by MLG, its become quite grossly apparent at how spoilt a seemingly large amount of the Starcraft 2 community have become. Which is what has spurred me to write this blog post.
For those who haven't seen yet, the event is a 3 day "Arena" as they call it. 32 players who have come from the online qualifiers with Champion Seeding and all the usual MLG format what-not, broadcast with several streams, the best casters, etc etc etc. All the good stuff. Sounds like an awesome event. The detail most are getting held up on is the $20 fee to watch this event. The single event, hence it being called a PPV (pay per view).
Now I know a lot of people are going to happily pay the $20 fee for this event, as well as the other 6 that will happen this year (according to Sundance's twitter). I understand that to some people that is a lot of money, a lot of angry replies seemed to come from College Students who are flat broke. That's unfortunate for anyone who quite literally cannot afford the $20. There are other people however who are just outright bitching at having to pay money for something. Shock horror? What Capitalist nonsense is this?
Those who cannot afford
Its a sad part of our World, but a very real one that is everywhere. We cannot afford something we want. What can you do about it? You pass cars every day that you can't afford. We all pass something every day that we cannot afford. We don't write angry letters to big corporations saying we cannot afford your product, so Fuck you. So if anyone is complaining at Sundance because they outright cannot afford it, then put your realist cap on for a second and be quiet.
Those who bitch at having to pay
These people are probably the worst. They have money flowing in and out of their bank accounts, of varying amounts. We buy the necessities but then have money left over for other stuff. Indulgences that we don't need. Alcohol, cigarettes, junk food, online games, nights out, how much more shit do I need to list. Stuff we don't need, just like paying for SC2 events is stuff we don't actually need. What you need to remember is, MLG is a business in the same way that GOMTV and Dreamhack and all those other tournaments are businesses. They have many employees to pay salaries to, they have to book venues, they have to maintain websites, pay whatever costs they may pay to bring Foreign players to their Country, etc etc etc the list goes on and on. This money does not materialise out of thin air. The money comes from us tuning in to see adverts. It comes from members who pay for better quality streams, or from members who pay to watch it at all.
If that still doesn't convince you then lets compare the PPV MLG event to 2 similar things:
PPV events on TV can apparently be anywhere from $3 to $50. For 1 night. Things such as Sports games. Movies can also be paid for on a 1 watch basis via TV.
A trip to the movies. The last time I went the ticket alone cost £10 (about $15). Not to mention the drink, popcorn and fuel to get there. Easily £20 ($30) for 1 night.
Now if you are browsing this forum and have read this far, its safe to assume you are an avid Starcraft 2 fan. If you aren't whining about the cost, whether your going to pay or not, then good on you. If you aren't then there is 1 final thing for you to remember.
A 2-3 hour movie, a football game, a wrestling match, a couple of bottles of alchohol, a big pack of cigarettes, any of that... PALES in comparison to Starcraft 2. For 1 payment of $20 we get the best casters doing constant games of the worlds best players for the following times:
Friday = 6 and a half hours.
Saturday = 8 and a half hours.
Sunday = 6 and a half hours.
That's 21 and a half hours of solid entertainment. With friends or in Barcraft's it will be even better. To get to this stage, MLG has been broadcasting free online qualifiers to get the best of the best from all over the World. Then the best performers at that event will go into their huge Championship events 4 times per year.
This shit is massive. This shit is more entertaining than any of my other "Non-Necessary Indulgences". I'm never eager when I have to pay more money, but wake up ladies and gentlemen. This is the big world. The event isn't hosted from a bedroom by 1 guy. Its a huge production that I can't wait for.
It just adds to the list. I am happy to pay for that list to grow.
Big rant over.
 
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We have to pay for something we didn't have to pay for in the past. We're not happy. They're doing something that decreases the value of their product (benefits-costs=value). They know they'll get bad press/response from it, but they think the money they will receive outweights the negative effect (their overall benefits->$ >>>> cost of bad response).
Less value for us = bad for us = we complain.
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On February 14 2012 10:18 Complete wrote:
We have to pay for something we didn't have to pay for in the past. We're not happy. They're doing something that decreases the value of their product (benefits-costs=value). They know they'll get bad press/response from it, but they think the money they will receive outweights the negative effect (their overall benefits->$ >>>> cost of bad response).
Less value for us = bad for us = we complain.
That's assuming what we had was sustainable in the first place.
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On February 14 2012 10:24 Redmark wrote:Show nested quote +On February 14 2012 10:18 Complete wrote:
We have to pay for something we didn't have to pay for in the past. We're not happy. They're doing something that decreases the value of their product (benefits-costs=value). They know they'll get bad press/response from it, but they think the money they will receive outweights the negative effect (their overall benefits->$ >>>> cost of bad response).
Less value for us = bad for us = we complain. That's assuming what we had was sustainable in the first place.
I have no problem with watching advertisements and every MLG had so much free time where the stream jsut showed the crowd picking their noses that I would have loved to watch advertisements in that time.
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On February 14 2012 10:24 Redmark wrote:Show nested quote +On February 14 2012 10:18 Complete wrote:
We have to pay for something we didn't have to pay for in the past. We're not happy. They're doing something that decreases the value of their product (benefits-costs=value). They know they'll get bad press/response from it, but they think the money they will receive outweights the negative effect (their overall benefits->$ >>>> cost of bad response).
Less value for us = bad for us = we complain. That's assuming what we had was sustainable in the first place.
And we all know what assuming does...
I'm happy to pay the $20 to watch the Arenas, and anyone who knows me is free to watch along with me. It's not like this is some unknown quantity, we are keenly aware of the value this offering gives to us fans. For a whole weekend, I can be entertained by my favorite past time for $20. MLG has proven that it's worth it, but to do so they had to offer their product for free.
Free product is not sustainable, especially with the great production level we see with each MLG event. If the SC2 fanbase refused to pay for all the tournaments we so eagerly watch (when they're free), those tournaments would be a losing proposition. No one in their right mind would host one.
Pony up and support eSports while you have the opportunity. If you love the game, then show the people bringing us the best games some love. Pack a lunch, find a friend with a pass, split the cost 6 ways, or simply tune into the insane wealth of free content. Quit smoking cigarettes. Win the lottery. Mug a child.
You can watch all the SC2 you want, but quality SC2 may start to disappear if it doesn't get support.
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There doesn't seem to be a market yet for a price that high.
I would say a fair amount of the population of SC2 gamers are students who barely have money to feed themselves let alone spend it on video games (which is maybe a reason they have played SCII since release.)
eSports is a way for advertisers to appeal to the 18-25 age range, let them at it.
But $20 is a big jump, we should no expect so much. Take baby steps, $10. If that is a smashing success, add a single non-expensive but interesting add-on and sell it for $20 next time.
Edit:
I don't know about you, but a blockbuster movie here is like 5$ on PPV. That has such a bigger market than esports.
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I completely agree with you sir. Thank you for bringing to us the most logical blog rant I've ever seen.
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I'll be paying to watch, but I don't feel like this was a smart move by MLG. It just feels like they're doing it too soon.
It wasn't until towards the end of last year that it felt like they got their production in order, and where the competition started feeling truly fierce (with the koreans joining in en masse). With the increased prize pool and the player accomodations they're offering, along with SC2 gameplay having matured, I feel like this year was their chance to truly make a splash in the way of attracting new viewers and new demographics to esports.
My advice would've been that 2013 was the proper year to reap the rewards of their actions. But I guess they felt like now was the time to capitalize.
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United States15275 Posts
So you wasted all that time writing a rant that shows your blatant ignorance of how business works and why this is a fundamentally bad business move? That's cool. But before you start to complain try to figure out the role of exclusivity and cultural relevance in a PPV event, and then you will start to realize why people are bitching about this.
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But MLG would be wise to look at the numbers and the complaints and decide what is the best business model for them in the future and whether PPV is the way to go. There is nothing wrong with feedback from the community.
As for your car analogy, a Ferrari and a McLaren and a Lamborghini are all around the same price. If you want a car with similar status, performance, quality, brand and recognition you are going to have to pay that much.
Compared to SC2 tournaments, for example with Assembly being a major tournament with good players and good production, and with months-long GSL being the same price, a lot would think the value just isn't there.
However OMG NesTea MVP Parting MC DRG Huk Leenock MKP Losira TheSTC and and and are all going to be there, so it may well be a bloody Ferrari 250GTO.
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the cost of entertainment is your souuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuul
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On February 14 2012 10:41 Drizzt3 wrote:
I completely agree with you sir. Thank you for bringing to us the most logical blog rant I've ever seen.
Logical blog rant....
Company wants to charge money....company doesn't want people to be annoyed. Company calls annoyed people stupid and annoying instead of trying to explain their reasoning.
Also offering the alternatives in the announcement was like a smack in the face to the casual viewer who watches by himself while doing other things on the weekends.
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Is the main mlg event still free to watch? If it is then who cares, we had to pay for hd anyways
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On February 14 2012 11:00 Mobius_1 wrote:
But MLG would be wise to look at the numbers and the complaints and decide what is the best business model for them in the future and whether PPV is the way to go. There is nothing wrong with feedback from the community.
As for your car analogy, a Ferrari and a McLaren and a Lamborghini are all around the same price. If you want a car with similar status, performance, quality, brand and recognition you are going to have to pay that much.
Compared to SC2 tournaments, for example with Assembly being a major tournament with good players and good production, and with months-long GSL being the same price, a lot would think the value just isn't there.
However OMG NesTea MVP Parting MC DRG Huk Leenock MKP Losira TheSTC and and and are all going to be there, so it may well be a bloody Ferrari 250GTO.
I've been feeling the oppisite way as a non-player. I think that the gameplay has gone up in level but down in entertainment. 95% of the games we see are standard predictable games where the determining factor in the end is who engages and micros the big battle properly, with the occasional game being turned around, and most snowballing from small advantages to the point one player will lose with perfect micro.
As a non-player I always look forward to that 4 gate, 2 rax, gold float, 10 pool, 3 hatch. Non-standard play is what will draw fans in not what the game has gone to.
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Simple. You can't afford it, you don't buy it. I can't afford it so I don't even watch GSL. I used to stay up late for that but now I don't even stay up for proleague. I only make LR threads when I'm only going to be up until maybe 2am at the latest. My life has just gotten sadder and sadder over the past year with regards to starcraft. Anyway I think MLG will notice the viewer count drop quite a bit. I'm not sure what the happy medium is between subscriptions and view count for ad revenue, but they're obviously working on finding out what that is. It's kinda sad that MLG is playing the greed card though. A lot of people who can't actually afford it will probably buy it anyway, just to follow the scene. I've felt really disconnected from SC2 ever since the GSL started requiring a subscription for VODs.
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On February 14 2012 10:39 Thaniri wrote:
There doesn't seem to be a market yet for a price that high.
I would say a fair amount of the population of SC2 gamers are students who barely have money to feed themselves let alone spend it on video games (which is maybe a reason they have played SCII since release.)
eSports is a way for advertisers to appeal to the 18-25 age range, let them at it.
But $20 is a big jump, we should no expect so much. Take baby steps, $10. If that is a smashing success, add a single non-expensive but interesting add-on and sell it for $20 next time.
Edit:
I don't know about you, but a blockbuster movie here is like 5$ on PPV. That has such a bigger market than esports.
I couldn't agree more, especially with the bolded part.
From free (SQ) to $20 is a very steep jump, especially in eSports terms.
I will still be happily paying the $20, and be watching Assembly on the other monitor, but I think MLG would have been better off with $10 for the weekend, and maybe a yearly deal where we can pay upfront for all of the upcoming MLG Arenas and Championships.
I guess we'll see how it works out for MLG though.
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Dont have the money, and even if i did, i would buy gsl ticket, not mlg's! Anyway, just been honest, hope they do well ... College kid here, so im broke like sh1t ...
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I'm not paying anything for an mlg stream. honestly i hope their "experiment" fails miserably and they return to theri old model
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I'll reclarify a bit, $20 may be a bit steep for 1 tournament. I'll still pay it however and excluding people who literally cannot afford it, I dont see any good reason why anyone else wouldn't. (Unless they are some miserable twat who hates MLG and every player in it.)
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bad business model imho.
Ofcourse you want to charge to get a profitable company, but hell they have 1821980 sponsors for the event so what are we paying for? to be spammed by advertising strategies?
Make a free medium quality stream with ads, and make a paid HD stream without ads and extra content like day9 floorwalking and talking to people/players etc. Make it so that you can download the VODS from every game afterwards with the paid version.
The problem what more people adress here is that it's just too much money for a weekend of stream watching. They cater a small audience with locations off MLG because EU cannot visit MLG in a comfortable fashion, so they are forced to pay money to watch a stream because mlg doesn't cater the people that will happily pay money to go see it live.
so if they really charge $20 to see MLG regardless, fine, i don't watch it and they will loose a otherwise supportive viewer. i will go watch NASL, IPL, FXOpen, players etc... streams instead.
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EPT
