【星海爭霸2】給韓國星海玩家的一封信:KeSPA 與暴雪間的恩怨澄清

【星海爭霸2】給韓國星海玩家的一封信:KeSPA 與暴雪間的恩怨澄清

這篇文章中我們可以看出,暴雪與 KeSPA 之間曾經有過許多恩恩怨怨,不為了什麼,只為了電競比賽的侵權訴訟。而在暴雪與韓方鬥智了許多年之後,暴雪的總裁兼共同創辦人 Mike Morhaime 先生親筆寫了這份聲明稿,用以澄清這幾年暴雪與 KeSPA之間的關係,以及暴雪對韓國電競的想法。以下為信的本文與中文翻譯:

給韓國星海爭霸社群的各位玩家,

我希望能花一點時間,來針對最近暴雪在韓國電競方面所發生的事件做一些說明,也希望能為我們在未來電競的發展與視野上擦亮些許火花。

但首先,對我來說最重要的,是澄清我們與KeSPA之間的關係,以及我們為什麼最終結束了與他們在未來可能合作上的討論。

在2007年,我們對於KeSPA在未告知我們的狀況下,非法地販賣了《星海爭霸》電競播放權,感到相當地訝異及失望,這侵犯了我們的智慧財產權。當此事發生時,我們也被強迫必須採取更進一步的行動。我們首先以誠意來與KeSPA的管理階層接洽,最終是希望在我們的權利受到保護的狀況下,能與對方找到更好的合作方式,同時也能一起增進電競的發展。

在過去的三年來,我們一直針對此,試著與KeSPA進行建設性的談判,並希望能獲得雙方的共識。但在很多時候,KeSPA對我們宣示了他們並不願尊重我們的智慧財產權。而直至今日,他們也未針對此發表不同的看法。另一方面,KeSPA的管理階層甚至威脅要將所有與暴雪有過對話、或是參加暴雪電競活動的隊伍、玩家和賽隊經理們加入黑名單。與你們所聽到負面消息不同的是,暴雪從未有想要「取回」舉辦電競比賽的權利,或者是想從中獲得過多的金錢利益。我們的初衷從以前到現在,一直只是想在電競蓬勃發展的環境中,保護我們的智慧財產權。

當《星海爭霸II:自由之翼》接近發售時,我們認為找到一個受到我們信任、並願意尊重我們智慧財產權的合作夥伴,已成為刻不容緩的事,因此我們選擇了一條新的道路,那就是我們最近所宣佈的,與GomTV之間的合作案,在合作上,我們額外給予GomTV舉辦與轉播暴雪相關遊戲電競比賽的權利。其實在過去,我們與GomTV就已經有過緊密的合作,在當時我們就覺得彼此對電競的目標與價值有相同的共識。我們也相信他們在幫助推廣電競時將是個很好的夥伴,此種關係將不只是在韓國,而是在全世界。

韓國已經成為全世界電競的領導者之一,我們對於《星海爭霸》也參與了其中一部份感到很榮幸。我們未來不止將支持GomTV,同時也將支持電競世界的其他職業玩家與轉播媒體。同時,我們更將在我們的遊戲中加入特殊的功能與介面,以滿足電競所需要的各種元素,並也將強化觀賽者的樂趣,並承諾支援電競發展。我們永遠地感謝您的理解與支持,我們並會持續地了解與傾聽您的意見與想法。

暴雪娛樂總裁暨共同創辦人Mike Morhaime敬上

 

附上英文原文(此原文由台灣暴雪提供):

To the Korean StarCraft Community,

I’d like to take a few moments to comment on recent events related to Blizzard’s involvement in eSports in Korea, and to hopefully shed some light on our motivations and our vision for the future of eSports.

But first, it’s important for me to clarify our relationship with KeSPA and why we ultimately decided to end our attempts to engage them in discussions about possible partnership. 

In 2007, we were surprised and disappointed to learn that KeSPA had infringed on our intellectual property rights by illegally selling StarCraft tournament broadcasting licenses without our consent. When that happened, we were forced to step in and take a more active role. We approached KeSPA's management in good faith, with the goal of finding ways to cooperate and continue to grow the eSports scene while still ensuring that our rights were protected.

In the three years that followed, we have repeatedly tried to engage KeSPA in constructive negotiations to address the situation and come to a mutual understanding. On multiple occasions, KeSPA made it clear to us that they did not respect our intellectual-property rights, and even to this day have never responded with a counter-proposal. In addition, KeSPA management has employed threats of blacklisting to block professional teams, players, and managers from speaking to Blizzard Entertainment and participating in our tournaments. Despite the negative rumors you might have heard, Blizzard’s intention has never been to “take over” eSports or to demand excessive sums of money. Our motivation from the beginning was, as it is now, to protect our intellectual property rights while fostering an environment where eSports can thrive.

As the launch of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty was approaching, we felt that our ability to move ahead with a partner who we could trust to respect our intellectual property had become urgent, and we decided the time had come to take a new route. This resulted in our recently announced partnership with GomTV, which gives them the exclusive rights to host and broadcast eSports competitions around Blizzard games. We’ve worked extensively with GomTV in the past, and in that time we’ve discovered that we share similar values and goals for eSports. We have faith that they will be a great partner in helping to advance eSports not just in Korea, but around the world. 

Korea has become one of the global leaders in eSports, and we are proud of the role that StarCraft has played in that process. We look forward to supporting GomTV's effort to reach out to pro players and other broadcasters in the eSports world. We will be adding features and functionality to our games to provide more competitive elements to enrich the sport and enhance the enjoyment for those who watch it, and we’re committed to supporting the growth of eSports. As always, we very much appreciate your understanding and support, and are always listening to your ideas and feedback.

Best regards,

Mike Morhaime
CEO and cofounder, Blizzard Entertainment

MOS
作者

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