Emerging Legal Issues in Esports (Conference Materials 2018)

Emerging Legal Issues in Esports

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• Moderator:
  • Lance Spaude (L’16), Associate, Poker Royalty, Las Vegas, Nevada, and member, Sports Law Alumni Association

• Panelists:
  • Nathaniel Blair, General Counsel, Hi-Rez Studios and Skillshot Media, Atlanta, Georgia
  • Roger Quiles, founding partner, Quiles Law, Staten Island, New York
  • James Sullivan (L’01), President, Poker Royalty, LLC, Las Vegas, Nevada, and member, NSLI Board of Advisors and Sports Law Alumni Association
  • Michael J. Wall, of counsel, member, Transactional & Securities Practice and the Sports Industry Team, Foley & Lardner LLP, Boston, Massachusetts

Emerging Legal Issues in Esports

• Esports currently has several different governing bodies and different rules and regulations for different competitions, do you see a time or need for a more centralized or national governance structure?

• How do you foresee eSports regulatory bodies handling potential doping, cheating, or match-fixing?

• There also are some conflicts between publishers of some of the games and possible ownership of game or event broadcasts of these games, how do you work in this environment and deal with these potential conflicts?

• How have eSports participants/athletes capitalized on their images/likenesses while acting as members of various organized teams and competing on publisher platforms that have existing copyright protections?

• Do you foresee eSports participants/athletes attempting to create some sort of trade association or union to fight for their rights in pay, etc., and if so, how would you deal with that development?

• The NCAA and other regulatory bodies have started to look into esports, presumably as a possible sport they could regulate, and derive revenue from, do you believe esports should be regulated similarly to other traditional sports?

SUPPLEMENTARY RESOURCES FOR  LEGAL ISSUES IN ESPORTS

Statutory Law

• 8 U.S.C. §§ 1101(a)(15)(O)(i) and (a)(15)(P)(i)(I) (2018).
• Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 512 (2018).
• Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1127 (2018).
• National Labor Relations Act of 1935, 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-69.
• Patentability of Inventions and Grant of Patents, 35 U.S.C. §§ 100-212 (2018).
• The Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101-06 (2018).

Example of a Player Contract

• Standard Player Contract between DT Esports LLC & Martin “Chino” Chino (Nov. 19, 2015).

Esports Organizations

• Esports Integrity Coalition (ESIC).
  • ESIC Anti-Corruption Code.
  • ESIC Anti-Doping Code.
  • ESIC Articles of Association and Rules.
• International Esport Federation (IESF).
  • IESF Anti-Doping Regulation (2014).
  • IESF Competition Regulation (2017).
  • IESF Statutes (2017).
• League of Legends Championship Series Season Official Rules (2018).
• WESA.

Case Law

• Baltimore Orioles, Inc. v. Major League Baseball Players Ass’n, 805 F.2d 663 (7th Cir. 1986).
• Cmty. For Creative Non-Violence et al., v. Reid, 490 U.S. 730 (1989).
• DC Comics, Inc. v. Reel Fantasy, Inc., 696 F.2d 24 (2d Cir. 1982).
• Lugosi v.  Universal Pictures, 603 P.2d 425 (Cal. 1979).
• McFarland v. Miller, 14 F.3d 912 (3d Cir. 1994).
• Murphy v. Nat’l Collegiate Athletic Ass’n, 138 S. Ct. 1461 (2018)
• Nichols v. Universal Pictures Corp., 45 F.2d 119 (2d Cir. 1930).
• Nat’l Ass’n of Broadcasters v. Copyright Royalty Tribunal, 675 F.2d 367 (D.C. Cir. 1982).
• Nat’l Collegiate Athletic Ass’n v. Christie, 730 F.3d 208 (3d Cir. 2013). 
• Nat’l Labor Relations Bd. v. Hearst Publ’n Inc., 322 U.S. 111 (1944).
• Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co. v. Darden, 503 U.S. 318 (1992).
• NBA v. Motorola, Inc., 105 F.3d 841 (2d Cir. 1997).
• NFL v. Insight Telecomms. Corp., 158 F. Supp. 2d 124 (D. Mass. 2001).
• Nichols v. Universal Pictures Corp., 45 F.2d 119 (2d Cir. 1930).
• S.G. Borello & Sons, Inc. v. Dep’t of Indus. Relations, 769 P.2d 399 (Cal. 1989).
• Titan Sports, Inc. v. Turner Broad. Sys., Inc., 981 F. Supp. 65 (D. Conn. 1997).
• United States v. Silk, 331 U.S. 704 (1947).
• Walt Disney Prods., v. Air Pirates, 581 F.2d 751 (9th Cir. 1978).

Legal Periodicals

• Amy E. Worden, Gaining Entry: The New O and P Categories for Nonimmigrant Alien Athletes, 9 Marq. Sports L.J. 467 (1999).
• Anthony Mulrain, Key Legal Issues for Esports Player Agreements, Sports Bus. J., Jan. 29, 2018.
• Anthony W. Metzler, Not Playing Games: Why the NCAA wants to get in on Esports, J. of High Tech. L. (Feb. 21, 2018).
• Antwayne Robertson, Internet Piracy of Sports Broadcasts: Finding the Solution in the United Kingdom and the United States, 25 Marq. Sports L. Rev. 469 (2015).
• Breanne Hoke, My Online Me: Why Gamers Should Turn to California’s Right of Publicity Laws in Protecting Their Online Avatars, 6 Intell. Prop. Brief 27 (2015).
• Brian D. Murphy, eSports Raise Labor Law Issues for Teams and Players, L. J. Newsl., Jan. 2018.
• Bridget A. Tong, A New Player has Entered the Game: Immigration Reform for Esports Players, 24 Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports L. J. 351.
• Colby Stivers, The First Competitive Video Gaming Anti-Doping Policy and Its Deficiencies under European Union, 18 San Diego Int’l L. J. 263 (2017).
• Dan Hagen, Fair Use, Fair Play: Video Game Performances and “Let’s Plays” as Transformative Use, 13 Wash. J. L. Tech. & Arts 245 (2018).
• Dan L. Burk, Owning E-Sports: Proprietary Rights in Professional Computer Gaming, 161 U. Pa. L. Rev. 1535 (2013).
• Daniel Bilsky, From Parts Unknown: WWE v. Jim Hellwig in the Ultimate Battle for Character Copyright, 19 Marq. Sports L. Rev. 419 (2009).
• Hunter Amadeus Bayliss, Not Just a Game: The Employment Status and Collective Bargaining Rights of Professional Esports Players, 22 Wash. & Lee J. of Civ. Rts. & Soc. Just. 359 (2016).
• John T. Holden, Ryan M. Rodenberg, & Anastasios Kaburakis, Esports Corruption: Gambling, Doping, and Global Governance, 32 Md. J. Int’l L. 236 (2017).
• Karen R. Harned, Georgine M. Kryda, & Elizabeth A. Milito, Creating a Workable Legal Standard for Defining an Independent Conractor, 4 J. Bus., Entrepreneurship & L. 93 (2010).
• Katherine E. Hollist, Time to be Grown-Ups About Video Gaming: The Rising eSports Industry and the Need of Regulation, 57 Ariz. L. Rev. 832 (2015).
• Kyle Coogan, Let’s Play: A Walkthrough of Quarter-Century-Old Copyright Precedent as Applied to Modern Video Games, 28 Fordham Intell. Prop., Media & Ent. L.J. 381(2018).
• Matthew Dobill, Leveling (Up) the Playing Field: A Policy-Based Case for Legalizing and Regulating Esports Gambling, 37 Loy. L.A. Ent. L. Rev. 139 (2017).
• Randy Finch & Jamie C. Yang, Rights to User Generated Content in a VR World, 5 NTUT J. of Intell. Prop. L. & Mgmt. 53 (2016).
• Stephanie N. Horner, DMCA: Professional Sports Leagues’ Answer to Protecting Their Broadcasting Rights Against Illegal Streaming, 24 Marq. Sports L. Rev. 435 (2014).
• Taylor Stanton Hardenstein, “Skins” in the Game: Counter-Strike, Esports, and the Shady World of Online Gambling, 7 UNLV Gaming L. J. 117 (2017).
• Timothy Heggem, It’s Complicated: Analyzing the Potential for Esports Players’ Unions, 6 Ariz. St. Sports & Ent. L. J. 447 (2017).
• Tori Allen, What’s in a Game: Collective Management Organizations and Video Game Copyright, 8 UNLV Gaming L. J. 209 (2018).

Articles

• Alexander Schlicht & Felix Hilgert, eSports Player Contracts: Pro Gamers = Pro Athletes?, Video Games L. (Feb. 20, 2018).
• Amy E. Worden, Gaining Entry: The New O and P Categories for Nonimmigrant Alien Athletes, 9 Marq. Sports L.J. 467 (1999).
• Andrew Gould, 17 NBA Teams will Participate in Newly Formed NBA 2K Esports League, Bleacher Report (May 4, 2017).
• Andrew Lynch, Esports’ Newest Governing Body Wants to be the FIFA of Video Games, Fox Sports (May 13, 2016).
• Andrew Visnovsky, Growth of Esports: Regulatory Concerns, Sports Integrity Initiative (Dec. 16, 2015).
• Andrew Webster, E-sports Leagues are Starting to Look a lot like the NFL and NBA, The Verge (July 27, 2018).
• Andy Chalk, US Supreme Court Opens the Door to Legal Esports Gambling, PC Gamer (May 14, 2018).
• Angela Natividad, The Future of Esports and the Implications for Advertising and Sports as We Know It, Adweek (June 20, 2018).
• Are eSports Players Actually Independent Contractors?, Quiles L. Blog (Apr. 17, 2015).
• Austen Goslin, Blizzard takes Disciplinary Action Against Four Overwatch League Players, Heroes Never Die (Mar. 9, 2018, 4:38 PM).
• Avi Selk, Overwatch League Star Felix “xQc” Lengyel Removed from Dallas Fuel After Racism Accusations, Wash. Post, Mar. 12, 2018.
• Ben Fischer, Esports Players Have Less Endorsement Freedom, Sports Bus. J., May 28, 2018.
• Ben Rains, A Governing Body has Officially been Formed for Esports, Sport Techie (May 17, 2016).
• Bob Garcia, Betting Match-Fixing, and Doping: Esports Regulations to Watch for in 2018, Americas Cardroom (May 9, 2018).
• Bryce Blum, Breaking Down the League of Legends Visa Issue, ESPN (Feb. 2, 2016).
• Carleigh Morgan, Gaming the System: Esports Players Face Many Challenges in Unionizing, Motherboard (Aug. 10, 2016, 9:00 AM).
• Cecilia D’Anastasio, Overwatch League Player Suspended After Being Accused of Sexually Preying on Teen [Update], Kotaku (Apr. 8, 2018, 8:22 PM).
• Chris Godfrey, “It’s Incredibly Widespread:” Why Esports has a Match-Fixing Problem, Guardian, July 31, 2018.
• Courtney New, Immigration in Esports: Do Gamers Count as Athletes?, Forbes, May 18, 2017.
• Dave Cecconi, An Overwatch Esports Immigration Primer in Advance of OWL Season 2, The Benchmob (July 14, 2018).
• Dustin Gouker, Esports Betting was Already Legal in Nevada, So Why a New Law?, The Lines (June 2, 2017).
• E.J. Schultz, Behind the Rise of Esports and What It Means for Brands, AdAge, (last visited Oct. 11, 2018).
• Edmund Irvine-Fortescue, Match-Fixing and Doping in Esports: The Need for Regulation, Sportsvibe (Aug. 18, 2018).
• ESPN Staff, Overwatch League Punishes Taimou, xQc, TaiRong and Silkthread for a Variety of Infractions, ESPN (Mar. 4, 2018).
• Esports Pro Staff, Does Esports Need Regulation?, MCV, July 29, 2016.
• Glenn Chapman, Esports League Announces Franchises for “Overwatch” Competition, Phys Org (July 13, 2017).
• Irwin A. Kishner, Esports Leagues Set to Level Up with Permanent Franchises, Forbes, Oct. 3, 2017.
• Isaac Rabicoff & Kenneth Matuszewski, The Rise of Esports Creates a Complicated Relationship with IP, IPWatchdog (Mar. 25, 2017).
• Jacob Hale, ESI Super Forum: Media Rights & Broadcasting in Esports, Esports Insider (Mar. 5, 2018).
• Jacob Wolf, League of Legends — Riot Plans to Mandate Teams Give Players Employee Benefits, ESPN (Nov. 1, 2016).
• Jacob Wolf, xQc Released from Dallas Fuel After Receiving Second Overwatch League Suspension, ESPN (Mar. 11, 2018).
• James Dickinson & Matthew Astley, What is eSports and How Should it be Regulated?, Harrison-Drury, (last visited Oct. 11, 2018).
• Jeff Sun & Jennifer Marles, Growing Popularity of Esports Raises New Copyright Issues, Oyen Wiggs (Oct. 21, 2016).
• Jessica Conditt, Esports Betting Just Got a Whole Lot Easier, engadget (May 31, 2018).
• Justin M. Jacobson, The Rise of the Sponsored Professional Competitive Gamer, Sporttechie (Jan. 30, 2018).
• Kellen Beck, “Overwatch” League and Team Suspended Pro Player over Homophobic Insult, Mashable (Jan. 22, 2018).
• Kieran Darcy, Riot’s Player’s Association Lays Groundwork for Unionization, ESPN (June 15, 2017).
• Liz Mullen, Two Groups Vie to Establish Esports Players Associations, L.A. Biz (Mar. 13, 2018).
• Liz Mullen, With League, Esports Entering a New Labor Era, Sports Bus. J., Sept. 26, 2016.
• Lydia Mitrevski, Esports Contracts: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, Esports Insider (May 30, 2017).
• Lydia Mitrevski, New Jersey Regulators Clarify Esports Betting Ban, Esports Insider (June 15, 2018).
• Mallory Locklear, Two Major Esports Players Associations are in the Works, engadget (Mar. 15, 2018).
• Mitchell Ferguson Esports Primer: Understanding Independent Contractors vs. Employees, Esports Observer (Jan. 21, 2016).
• Mitchell Ferguson, Trump’s Muslim Ban is Already Having a Serious Impact on the Esports Industry, Esports Observer (Jan. 31, 2017).
• Paresh Dave, In E-sports, It’s the Bosses who are Rallying for a Union, L.A. Times, (May 26, 2017).
• Patrick Bonifacio, Philippines Gaming Board Introduces Mandatory Licensing Fees and Revenue Tax for Esports Competition, Dot Esports (Jan. 11, 2018).
• Paul Tassi, The U.S. Now Recognizes Esports Players as Professional Athletes, Forbes, (July 14, 2013).
• Rahul Sood, Esports Legitimizes Itself; It Doesn’t Need the Olympics, Venture Beat (Aug. 4, 2018).
• Robert Elder, Activision Blizzard has Formed a New Esports League for Overwatch, Bus. Insider (Nov. 14, 2016).
• Robert Silverman, Why Regulating the Billion-Dollar Esports World is Nearly Impossible, The Week (Aug. 16, 2016).
• Roman Brtka, Intellectual Property in the World of eSports, IPWatchdog (Apr. 2, 2018).
• Roman Brtka, Legal Essentials for Esports Organisers and Sponsors, EGR Compliance (Sept. 3, 2018).
• Stephen Ellis, IP Law, Broadcasting Rights and Esports, ESPN (Jan. 25, 2016).
• The Legal Divide: Do Esports Demand a New Set of Rules?, iGaming Times, (last visited Oct. 11, 2018).
• Victoria Rose, Valve Rescinds Galaxy Battles Sponsorship, Citing Filipino Regulations, Flying Courier (Jan. 4, 2018).
• Yannick LeJacq, Score! Professional Video Gamers Awarded Athletic Visas, CNBC (July 22, 2013).
• Yifan Wu, Booming E-sports Industry Faces Contract Challenges, Medill Reports Chi. (Mar. 14, 2017).
• Zach Schonbrun, An N.C.A.A. for Esports? Rivals Angle to Govern Campus Video Gaming, N.Y. Times, (Oct. 6, 2017).