Abstract
From Gaming Law Review (GLR) Editor-in-Chief Sue Schneider
What a pleasure it was for GLR's managing editor, Dawn Wagner, and myself to work with Brett Abarbanel, our esteemed guest editor on this special issue of the journal on esports. Truly an expert on this topic, she helped guide the content and made superior suggestions for who to involve as contributors and reviewers. To our benefit, she also gave us some incredibly helpful hints on managing a peer-reviewed publication given her years of experience at the UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal. With that as a lead-in, I'll pass “Notes from the Editor” over to her for this issue.
From Special Issue Guest Editor Brett Abarbanel, PhD
Director of Research, International Gaming Institute, University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV)
Affiliate Research Scientist, UCLA Gambling Studies Program, University of California, Los Angeles
It is with excitement that I introduce this special issue of Gaming Law Review, focused on esports. Our call for papers sought contributions on the legal, regulatory, and economic impacts of esports as they relate to the gambling industry. We were incredibly impressed by the quality and breadth of subjects in our large volume of submissions.
It is obvious that despite being such a nascent industry, esports has already drawn substantial attention from all parts of the gaming industry. Our submissions arrived from around the world and ranged many disciplines, from historical review of the esports industry and its relationship with gambling, to detailed analysis of how the entire esports community can contribute to game integrity and maintaining regulatory stability. However, the most popular topic by far among our submissions was skin betting, with about one-third of submissions directly addressing the subject and nearly all mentioning skins in some way. Skin betting is currently a dominant part of the esports gambling market, and it seems inevitable that so many of our authors would seek to discuss this complex topic.
Our special issue opens with David Schwartz's “Research (In)complete: An Exploratory History of Competitive Video Gaming,” which sets the foundation for the special issue content. Schwartz takes us back to the days of Spacewar and Pong, guiding us on a narrative through the early days of video gaming competition in small arcades to today's massive esports events with hundreds of millions of viewers.
Desirée Martinelli's “Skin Gambling: Have We Found the Millennial Goldmine or Imminent Trouble?” leads us into the first of two articles directly addressing the hot topic of skins betting. Martinelli's article offers a broad overview of the current state of esports and skins gambling, including recent controversies, scandals, and litigation. She then reviews how this new gambling currency and medium may (or may not) fit within extant U.S.-facing federal statutes and state case law.
The second of our two feature articles on skins betting comes from John Holden and Sam Ehrlich, “Esports, Skins Betting, and Wire Fraud Vulnerability.” Holden and Ehrlich dig deep into pertinent wire fraud case history and discuss how controversy surrounding skins and other virtual currencies makes it difficult for prosecutors to find the teeth necessary to enforce existing law, while suggesting that fraudulent activity within skins betting may fit within U.S. federal mail and wire fraud statutes, and addressing implications for other countries, as well.
We continue with an article that I am proud to co-author with Sally Gainsbury and Alex Blaszczynski, “Game On: Comparison of Demographic Profiles, Consumption Behaviors, and Gambling Site Selection Criteria of Esports and Sports Bettors.” This empirical research is aimed at gathering information on the specific perceptions of and preferences for legal versus offshore betting sites and how these perceptions and preferences are different between esports bettors and traditional sports bettors. These findings are then used to guide recommendations to operators and regulators to ensure a competitive online gambling environment that encourages consumers to patronize licensed operations.
Chandler Pohl continues our articles section with “Sword and Shield: Nevada, Esports, and the Non-Divergent Interests.” Pohl assesses esports through the lens of the Nevada regulatory landscape, suggesting a publisher-friendly environment akin to the relationship between the state and the casino industry with a self-policing style of regulation that requires the industry to understand what its own best interests are.
The articles section concludes with Adam Brickell's “Addressing Integrity and Regulatory Risks in Esports: The Responsibility of the Whole Esports Community.” Brickell parallels esports' integrity needs with those seen in sport, and draws on an extensive review of existing and potential game integrity risks to provide suggestions on the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders, from game developers to gambling regulatory agencies.
Our Brief Reports section is comprised of a research note on gambling involvement and potential harms among esports bettors, in another submission co-authored by Sally Gainsbury, Brett Abarbanel, and Alex Blaszczynski, “Intensity and Gambling Harms: Exploring Breadth of Gambling Involvement Among Esports Bettors.” The article finds that esports bettors participate in significantly more gambling games than sports bettors, which may mean this group is more susceptible to gambling problems. Stakeholders are encouraged to embrace best practices in responsible gambling within this burgeoning gambling vertical.
We then turn the page to one of the highlights of this issue—a roundtable conversation with gambling regulators and industry oversight, headed up by the UNLV International Center for Gaming Regulation's executive director, André Wilsenach. Wilsenach hosts Steve Brennan, chief executive of the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission; A.G. Burnett, chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board; Nicholas Khoo, chairman of Singapore's Cybersports and Online Gaming Association; and Ian Smith, integrity commissioner of the Esports Integrity Coalition, for a look at how esports and gambling regulations overlap and differ across multiple jurisdictions. This roundtable shows the different approaches toward gambling regulation—including government-, operator-, and social-safeguard-focused approaches—and how they expand that to the esports space.
Our Commentary section in this special issue hosts two manuscripts. Our first, from Ross Sylvester and Patrick Rennie, entitled, “The World's Fastest-Growing Sport: Maximizing the Economic Success of Esports Whilst Balancing Regulatory Concerns and Ensuring the Protection of Those Involved,” suggests two areas critical for esports industry growth: media rights strategies and avoidance of knee-jerk reactionary regulations. Our second commentary article features a Q&A with Veronique dos Reis, the legal, compliance, and regulatory affairs manager at Pinnacle. GLR editor-in-chief Sue Schneider interviews dos Reis for some fascinating insight with one of the first operators in the esports betting space.
Our case analyses in this issue feature a review of two skins betting cases involving game developer Valve Corporation. Breyen Canfield offers an analysis of these cases that suggests they are remarkable in their lack of remarkability, despite media fanfare around these cases when they were filed. As Canfield writes, esports is being treated “as just another new kid on the legal block.”
We wrap up the issue with a relatively new segment for GLR—Best of the Web, in which we have some curated recommendations for online resources for those who seek more knowledge in this special issue topic.
A note before you delve into the contents of this special issue: as might be expected with a budding industry like esports, there is some inconsistency with terms. The GLR staff follows the Associated Press's practice of esports as the term to describe this industry, but you will also see eSports, e-Sports, and other such variations in this special issue in places where older written work is cited in these current articles, or global language differences have dictated different spellings.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not mention how much of an honor it was to work with GLR editor-in-chief Sue Schneider and managing editor Dawn Wagner. It is always a pleasure to work with exceptionally kind, competent people, and Sue and Dawn have both qualities in spades. And many thanks to all who contributed to the success of this issue, including all the authors who submitted their manuscripts and our tireless peer reviewers—who turned around reviews in record time.
Again, thank you to all who contributed, and we hope you enjoy this special issue on esports.