This article has been co-authored by Ritu Rajkumari, who is a practicing advocate in Delhi and M Shadan Geelani, who is a second-year law student from University School of Law and Legal Studies, GGSIPU.
Introduction:
With a smartphone in every hand and internet connection on every phone, the Gen-Z are spending the bulk of their time on smartphones. The physical sports like cricket, football and basketball are being gradually replaced by electronic sports, also termed as E-sports. With the onset of COVID-19 lockdown, companies like Krafton, Epic Games, Activision saw their golden opportunity to enter the global market. They released games like PUBG (BGMI for the Indian market), Fortnite, Rocket League, Call of Duty, etc. These games grabbed the attention of the masses and the time and resources invested by these youngsters sky-rocketed overnight. With the exponential rise in participation in these games, there is an urgent need to introduce an e-Sports framework which protects the interests of its stakeholders.
There exists a misconception that E-sports is a gambling activity, an epitome of addiction and a wastage of time. E-sports, however, is an organized and competitive industry whose approach is towards playing video games in a highly professional manner. Ironically, unlike many other sports in India, E-sports does not even have a national sports federation or a self-regulatory body that can manage or regulate the e-sport in our country. It lacks a 'BCCI' equivalent for E-sports, even though it is nearly as popular with high number of young people.
In what can be considered a landmark event for the gaming industry, the Asian Games in Hangzhou, scheduled to be held in September, 2022, will include E-sports as a medal event. Further, the 2024 Olympics will include E-sports as one of the main events. Currently, some E-sports tournaments witness upto 25 million spectators with Star Sports taking the role of a stakeholder and livestreaming the tournament on live TV for the first time in India. According to the EY-FICCI 2022 report, the E-sports industry generated revenue worth 7.5 billion in 2019 and 9.7 billion in 2020. The revenue generated by E-sports in the financial year 2021 was 2.5 billion rupees. This amount is expected to reach 11 billion rupees by the end of financial year 2025. It would not be wrong to say that E-sports is the future of sporting events with its presence on OTT (over the top) platforms and live streaming.
E-sports was kept as a demonstration event in the Commonwealth Games 2022, which was held in Birmingham, England. The Indian contingent made India proud by winning the bronze medal in the event but since it was not a medal event, the medal earned wouldn’t be counted in the tally. Nevertheless, this feat has conveyed what Indians are capable of, in the field of E-sports, if only there was proper administration or self-regulation. The Government of India has not recognized any of the existing E-sports and gaming federations present in the country to govern and oversee the activities. The government has always been silent on the aspect of advancement of e-sports in India.
The Stakeholders:
E-sports is an enormous industry and there are several stakeholders in this industry. The very first stakeholder are the gamers who play competitively and participate in tournaments. They put in more than 6 hours on a daily basis in the playtime. They invest their time, money and energy in gaming.
The second stakeholder are the streamers who play the game casually and livestream the game to an interested audience over the internet. These streamers generate revenue in a lot of different ways. Some of them include advertisements, sponsorships, viewer subscriptions and also donations from their viewers and followers.
The third stakeholder are the organizations which sponsors these events. They support the above two stakeholders of this industry. Sponsors are essential as their contribution to the revenue generation is the highest. They bring sponsorships for the professional players for training and equipments and also for the streamers.
The last stakeholder in this industry are the game developers. They help in the development of the game, adding new features, removing bugs and glitches etc. These developers are the ones who make the game interactive, navigable and enjoyable for the above-mentioned contributors and stakeholders of E-sports.
The E-Sports Federation of India (ESFI) may have been bestowed with the onus of governing E-sports in our country, but despite being the governing body, it has not been recognized to be a National Sports Federation (NSF). As it is an established fact that in recent times, that in order to be an NSF, the particular body is required to be recognized by the Ministry of Youth Affairs (MYAS) on a yearly basis. The ESFI has not been mentioned in the two consecutive lists of NSFs released by MYAS in 2017 as well as 2018. In accordance with the National Sports Development Code of India 2011, (Sports Code), there are certain mainstream criteria fulfilling which a governing body can be recognized as to be an NSF, which are as follows-
- Membership of International Organizations;
- Recognition from the Indian Olympic Authority;
- Active Efforts by the Federation for the Development of Sports in the Country;
- Financial and Managerial Accountability;
- Democratic Election;
- Transparency in Governance;
- Availability of Required Infrastructure.
The Legal Position:
There are several laws which are currently applicable to the stakeholders of the E-sports industries. The following Acts which are already being used by the various stakeholders and organizations to achieve their goals i.e. advancement of E-sports-
Copyrights Act, 1957 – This act deals with the trademark and the protection of the work of the game developers. The aim of this act is to put an end to the duplication and infringement of the work product developed by the game developers. This partly protects the computer software work and protects works like the algorithms etc. A game has several features which makes it unique. These features describe the game and how well it will behave across the multitude of devices.
Indian Contracts Act (ICA) 1872 forms the very basis of contracting and enforcing legal obligations in E-sports industry. Various stakeholders execute different types of contracts, it can range from the contracts of the professional players to the contracts of streaming and broadcasting. It even governs the monetary benefits a professional player receives from tournaments and sponsorships.
ICA 1872 acts as an incentive as well as a deterrent for the people involved in this industry. It helps secure the income of the stakeholders. It governs the contracts between the developers with their respective companies, professional players to the organizations they play for as well as the contracts for the streamers in partnerships with the companies.
Apart from these incentives, there are also several barriers which are acting as a deterrent to the evolution of E-sports in India-
- Legal recognition - In the absence of an unrecognized self-regulatory body, there are no rules and regulations which can protect the stakeholders in enforcing their rights under various laws.
- Age Limit for Teenage E-Sports Players- E-sports players are generally in their teenage years and much before he/she is the legal contracting age of 18 years. According to the Indian contract act, 1872, a minor cannot enter into a contract. Hence, they are ineligible to contract and such contracts are unenforceable against the minors, who are e-sports players.
- Absence of a robust framework and overarching law - Online gaming is a multi-crore industry and despite this, there are no special gaming laws in India. This has weakened the enforceability of laws, which are already applicable, though they are insufficient to the current needs of the E-sports industry. Thus, the government has to create a constructive environment by enacting framework for the protection of various stakeholders in the E-sports industry.
The Road Ahead
E-sports is still in its nascent stage and needs significant attention from the government to enhance infrastructure, equipment, public interest, and participation. The government can incorporate E-sports into the curriculum and recognize it as a profession. It should also consider developing E-sports stadiums, training facilities, E-sports complexes with fast internet, infrastructure, and equipment, and E-sports industrial parks that serve as incubators for game developers and teams. Moreover, financial and contractual stability for E-sports players and support for E-sports businesses and service providers should also be offered. All of this indicates the necessity for India to select a National Sports Federation for E-sports, which should be given financial and managerial support to develop infrastructure and promote E-sports in schools and universities, just like other traditional sports. The E-sports industry also requires a specialized law which take into account the aspirations of the E-sports players, financial protection for the sponsors and prevent infringement of the game design and products. India needs a comprehensive framework and specialized law which also takes protection measures for the data of these stakeholders.
