if Blizzard/Gretech decided to invest in these companies instead of purely sucking them dry they probably would have reached a settlement.
Paul Sams Press Conference Dec 02, 2010 - Page 3
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BLinD-RawR
ALLEYCAT BLUES49479 Posts
if Blizzard/Gretech decided to invest in these companies instead of purely sucking them dry they probably would have reached a settlement. | ||
cocoa_sg
Singapore296 Posts
I only want MBC and OGN to continue BW without any more interference from Kespa AND Blizzard. Blizzard is only complicating things much further, when BW had been going smoothly for 10 years already. With WoW and CoD in their pockets, of course, the South Korean proscene, both BW and SC2, would make only 5% of their global profits. This strong-arm tactic by Blizzard is only going to invoke emotional responses from the Korean public regardless of whether they hire the "strongest lawyer group in Korea" or not. In short, it is only going to get worse, instead of better. I am pretty disgusted by the entire thing already, but what can you expect from Blizzard? =\ | ||
butter
United States785 Posts
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charlesatan
Philippines75 Posts
On December 02 2010 16:09 BLinD-RawR wrote: to be honest the only issue I see in this whole schabang(spelling?) is that the broadcasting companies don't make a lot of money and have only been doing this for the fans and barely managing to 'break even'(incorrect use of term?). That assumes that broadcasting companies are actually breaking even (i.e. prove it) and in the event that they actually are, Blizzard is open to negotiating the sum. As emphasized by Sams in the interview, the amount can be negotiated, but acknowledging of IP rights is their main problem. Nor has this stopped the broadcasting companies paying much higher fees in the past. | ||
supernovamaniac
United States3046 Posts
Why not back in 2001 while they had the chance? + Show Spoiler + Hanbitsoft Starleague Finals back in 2001 | ||
Antoine
United States7481 Posts
On December 02 2010 16:18 supernovamaniac wrote: So they come forth now due to IP rights... Why not back in 2001 while they had the chance? + Show Spoiler + Hanbitsoft Starleague Finals back in 2001 kespa wasn't charging to broadcast until 2007, when blizzard did come forward. | ||
BLinD-RawR
ALLEYCAT BLUES49479 Posts
On December 02 2010 16:18 supernovamaniac wrote: So they come forth now due to IP rights... Why not back in 2001 while they had the chance? + Show Spoiler + Hanbitsoft Starleague Finals back in 2001 in your situation I believe its because Hanbitsoft was their Korean publisher. | ||
cocoa_sg
Singapore296 Posts
On December 02 2010 16:22 Antoine wrote: kespa wasn't charging to broadcast until 2007, when blizzard did come forward. And I wonder why they did that? Would you like me to explain? Kespa started charging MBC and OGN from 2007 due to the explosive growth of the BW proscene, so that they could re-invest back into the scene to help it develop further, thus Kespa's non-profit status. MBC and OGN were barely breaking even, but they broadcasted BW out of love for the fans. That is the simple gist of it. Kespa has been abusing its power sometimes since then, and that is why I only want MBC and OGN to come out out of this whole mess unhurt. Kespa and Blizzard can fight together for as long as they want, as long as they leave BW alone. =\ | ||
Zim23
United States1681 Posts
On December 02 2010 16:27 cocoa_sg wrote: And I wonder why they did that? Would you like me to explain? Kespa started charging MBC and OGN from 2007 due to the explosive growth of the BW proscene, so that they could re-invest back into the scene to help it develop further, thus Kespa's non-profit status. MBC and OGN were barely breaking even, but they broadcasted BW out of love for the fans. That is the simple gist of it. Kespa has been abusing its power sometimes since then, and that is why I only want MBC and OGN to come out out of this whole mess unhurt. Kespa and Blizzard can fight together for as long as they want, as long as they leave BW alone. =\ It does NOT matter why they charged. It doesn't matter at all. The fact is, they charged for the use of a product they DO NOT own. That's ridiculous no matter what the reason is. You have no right to charge for something you don't own. I don't care if you did it to help orphan dolphin babies, it's still not your right. P.S. I don't buy for one second that KeSPA charged simply for altruistic reasons. | ||
FakeSteve[TPR]
Valhalla18444 Posts
On December 02 2010 15:41 charlesatan wrote: Basically, the licensing fee is a barrier to entry. Whoever plans to broadcast the games needs to prove that they have the financial capability to produce such shows. It's not necessarily Kespa-specific (i.e. whether MBCGame is unable to produce good shows), but rather a general rule for Blizzard's terms when it comes to broadcasting their shows (in the event that another broadcaster wants to air Blizzard's games). The issue at hand though is the acknowledging of IP rights, which is the second of Blizzard's conditions. I don't think there's any doubt that MBCGame and OnGameNet can produce quality shows, but rather that they're not recognizing Blizzard's IP Rights. To restate, Sam is saying that Blizzard wants its IP rights acknowledged and is suing on principle. That's the reason for the fee (which is less than what Kespa was charging for their broadcasting rights), why contest license fees (not to be confused w/ broadcasting fees) are just 1 won per year (http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewpost.php?post_id=6950901), or that profits from broadcasting fees will be donated to charity (http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewpost.php?post_id=6614875). this post is mandatory reading if you are in this thread | ||
smileyyy
Germany1816 Posts
- You have said reverently in regards to rights of the players . But SC 2 leagues seem to have less of the rights for the players than SC 1. Haha Show me Sc1 Programmer Contract. Then we can discuss about how much rights the player actually has. TBH theres so much bs with this IP/Kespa/Broadcasting. I hope a court will have a final ruling. to be honest the only issue I see in this whole schabang(spelling?) is that the broadcasting companies don't make a lot of money and have only been doing this for the fans and barely managing to 'break even'(incorrect use of term?). if Blizzard/Gretech decided to invest in these companies instead of purely sucking them dry they probably would have reached a settlement. Thats what they have been saying I didnt saw any actual numbers. If they dont make enough money maybe they need bigger sponsors / or spent their money more efficient. Theres no way that they just break even and do this for the love of e-sports. | ||
Wolf
Korea (South)3290 Posts
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dtz
5834 Posts
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Garnet
Vietnam9008 Posts
- Blizzard makes enough money from WoW and doesn't care much about profits, but is pissed at KeSPA for charging broadcasting fees when they didn't make the game. | ||
Selith
United States238 Posts
On December 02 2010 16:16 butter wrote: Kim & Chang? Is that like Flash & Jaedong of law firms? I looked around a bit. Turns out Kim & Chang is indeed the Flash & Jaedong of law firms in South Korea. Basically, elites of the elite lawyers are there. Supposedly, even some of the bigger corporations find it rather expensive to hire them. Edit: I found some information on this. Is on Fomos. Holy crap, they really are Flash & Jaedong of the law firms. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blizzard Entertainment hired Korean law firm, Kim & Jang (Chang is also a way to say 장) to represent them in the IP rights lawsuit. Paul Sams said during the press conference that, "In regards to the lawsuit, we are cooperating with Korea's best law firm, "Kim & Jang". Law firm Kim & Jang was founded in 1973, with history spanning for over 30 years. Based on 2010's data, this massive law firm has over 450 lawyers belonging to this firm, and has earned over 350,000,000,000 won in yearly profits. Especially, the law firm is known for being the leader in IP rights area. The law firm has been selected as the best law firm in South Korea by the world-renowned Chambers and Partners' yearly publication, Chambers Asia. In addition, the law firm has been selected as the best law firm in IP rights area by the professional magazine "Managing Intellectual Property" (managed under Euromoney). According to MIP, in June 2010, Kim & Jang has been no.1 in areas dealing with applying for patents, patent lawsuit, trademark registration, trademark lawsuit, and intellectual property. Also, since 2006, Kim & Jang has been selected the best law firm for IP rights area for 4 years straight. It is expected there will be a fierce courtroom drama with Blizzard hiring Kim & Jang as their law firm, the firm known for being the very best in IP rights area of the law. | ||
Lokian
United States699 Posts
On December 02 2010 17:03 dtz wrote: i think from legal point of view , it seems that Blizzard has the absolute upperhand. The only hope for Kespa/OGN/MBC is some local bias or intense lobbying between government bodies. Korea can rule it however they want... but the consequence can be dire. it's hard to tell... whats better for the country. Korea already got tons of game developing companies... so they can pretty much ignore IP rights and use their own games I guess. (Although I would assume even those companies will probably seek other places...) SO YEAH... blizzard's gotta win for the sake of games. I mean GAMES not just starcraft 1. in korea. | ||
zeehar
Korea (South)3804 Posts
[B]but what can you expect from Blizzard? =\ making the game you revere so much? | ||
ComusLoM
Norway3547 Posts
People who are saying Blizzard are trying to suck the broadcasters dry should know the only reason their profits aren't great is because of the huge fees they have to pay kespa. And the players really aren't that much better off with huge practice regimes and having to pay some if not all of their prize money back to their teams. | ||
Milkis
5003 Posts
On December 02 2010 15:41 charlesatan wrote: Basically, the licensing fee is a barrier to entry. Whoever plans to broadcast the games needs to prove that they have the financial capability to produce such shows. It's not necessarily Kespa-specific (i.e. whether MBCGame is unable to produce good shows), but rather a general rule for Blizzard's terms when it comes to broadcasting their shows (in the event that another broadcaster wants to air Blizzard's games). The issue at hand though is the acknowledging of IP rights, which is the second of Blizzard's conditions. I don't think there's any doubt that MBCGame and OnGameNet can produce quality shows, but rather that they're not recognizing Blizzard's IP Rights. To restate, Sam is saying that Blizzard wants its IP rights acknowledged and is suing on principle. That's the reason for the fee (which is less than what Kespa was charging for their broadcasting rights), why contest license fees (not to be confused w/ broadcasting fees) are just 1 won per year (http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewpost.php?post_id=6950901), or that profits from broadcasting fees will be donated to charity (http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewpost.php?post_id=6614875). The issue is that MBC/OGN/KeSPA has a very different idea of "Recognizing IP rights" than Blizzard does. Who is right? Who knows. EDIT: Also, I don't buy the "barrier to entry" bullshit. If so, they would need to do it once, not for every contract. Doing it for every contract does not go along with "Barriers to entry", it's just a transaction cost at that point -_- On December 02 2010 17:26 ComusLoM wrote: This just firmly kept myself in the blizzard gom camp. I've had a healthy distrust for Kespa ever since they cancelled the GOM Classic by not allowing players. If anyone doesn't want SC1 to continue it's them considering the huge amount Kespa themselves are wanting for broadcast fees. People who are saying Blizzard are trying to suck the broadcasters dry should know the only reason their profits aren't great is because of the huge fees they have to pay kespa. And the players really aren't that much better off with huge practice regimes and having to pay some if not all of their prize money back to their teams. iirc MBCGame had like a profit of like 2 million in 2008. I wouldn't be surprised if the "not making a profit" refers only to MSL, which wouldn't be surprising since it's literally just advertisement for MBC Game and the sponsors. But if you believe KeSPA, KeSPA just puts the money back in the stations (in fact they argue that they invested more back in). If KeSPA is charging a huge amount, what does that make the "Barriers of entry" fee which is a bit more than what kespa charges now? | ||
Al Bundy
7257 Posts
About Kim & Chang: Oh my. The netizens were right, IP rights abuse is over. | ||
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