Esports Player Unionization Depends on Players, Says LoL Legend Snoopeh
*By Zane Bhansali and Chris Jalandoni*
TSM’s Fortnite pro Ali "Myth" Kabbani ignited a conversation last month about esports player unions when he suggested he might start one for the Fortnite community. But esports unions were on the mind of Stephen "Snoopeh" Ellis long before Kabbani pushed them into gamers' consciousness.
A League of Legends World Championship semi-finalist, Snoopeh first proposed the concept of esports player unions in 2014 after retiring from competitive play. In a Reddit discussion that year, Snoopeh commented that he was “currently deliberating the formation of a player union to help standardize contracts and create transparency between players and teams.”
But Snoopeh later amended his comment, rephrasing union as “player association.” A year later, he shifted his position again, saying that while he thought unions “may be necessary down the road, we are not at that point yet” due to cost and legal complexity.
Today, Snoopeh stands by that judgment. On the topic of Myth’s hypothetical union, Snoopeh said one of the main obstacles to creating a Fortnite union is the relatively small scale of the game's professional player base ー especially measured against its massive casual player base.
“If you’re Epic Games, why do you necessarily want to cater to a small fraction of your player base when you’ve got this $3 billion a year revenue to cater to?” Snoopeh asked during an interview with Cheddar Sports.
In his view, the players themselves are the biggest barriers to unionization. “One of the things that would be super important in a union is getting the players to fund the member dues,” he said. “None of the players necessarily want to part with any cash.”
That attitude is emblematic of the gaps in the still-growing esports industry. “As recently as this year, we’ve got players that are still not getting to look at contracts,” Snoopeh said. “There’s a huge lack of education and awareness amongst players in the importance of taking their career seriously.”
To that end, Snoopeh started the “Player Resource Center” in partnership with attorney Bryce Blum in 2016 to educate players on legal issues and health insurance.
For him, a union isn’t possible until that basic foundation is laid ー and players realize its importance.
“I think ultimately the responsibility is on the players,” he said. “Esports is still \[new\], even though it’s been around 20, 30 years ー it’s still a really young ecosystem. If you look at other successful unions in different sports, the players running those were playing for decades. We don’t have that history or that longevity yet in esports.”
The skateboarding legend, who became the first person to land a '900' trick back in 1999, has successfully turned his sporting career into a business empire. It all boils down to perseverance and taking risks, he tells Cheddar's Jon Steinberg.
The social media network's live video platform will help grow its monthly active users, especially as consumers rapidly ditch cable for on-demand content, says Motley Fool analyst Jason Moser.
Frank Zaccanelli, a former owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, says the NFL's decision to adopt a new policy on the national anthem without consulting the NFL Players Association was, "one of the dumbest things I've ever heard."
Former ESPN anchor Bram Weinstein says that, while players may not strike because of the league's new policy, there will likely be some kind of response.
"Your Call Football" allows viewers at home to pick their favorite of three pre-selected plays while a real game takes place. The two-team league ends its first three-game season on Thursday night.
After the Supreme Court lifted the ban on sports gambling this week, the National Hockey League said it wasn't changing its rules against the practice. And teams won't act until the league decides to do something, says the L.A. Kings' chief operating officer, Kelly Cheeseman.
The Seattle City Council passed a new law that will require companies making more than $20 million a year to pay a 'head tax.' Amazon and other Seattle-based companies will pay a tax of 14 cents per employee per hour worked, which comes out to roughly $275 per employee each year. The tax will raise money for affordable housing since home prices have risen recently in Seattle. In response, Amazon's vice president said this move "forces us to question our growth here." A Starbucks exec criticized the city for spending "without reforming and fail[ing] without accountability."
A number of top Tesla executives have left the company in the past few months. Aaron Cole, managing editor at Motor Authority, joins us to discuss whether investors should be worried that this 'drain brain' will have negative consequences for the electric carmaker. The company is ramping up production to meet its ambitious Model 3 targets.
Cheddar's Brad Smith speaks with Joe Gibbs, Pro Football Hall of Famer and owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, at a special event outside the New York Stock Exchange celebrating Stanley Black & Decker's 175th anniversary. Gibbs talks about how NASCAR is focusing on expanding its digital outreach to reach a younger audience. He also weighs in on the Supreme Court's decision to reverse a ban on sports gambling.
The car racing organization's biggest focus now is trying to reach millennials by adjusting how the sport can be consumed, says Joe Gibbs, owner of a NASCAR racing team and a former NFL coach.
Increased interest in the Overwatch League could push franchise fees as high as $100 million in the future, says eSports expert Rod Breslau, better known as "Slasher." The League is currently wrapping up its first season and the Grand Finals are scheduled to kick off at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY, on July 27.
