As a trailblazer in sports law, attorney Ellen M. Zavian has a keen eye for developing trends in the industry. So, it is not surprising that she spotted the rising esports trends long before most of us had an inkling of what was going to happen.
We wanted to learn more about her perspective beyond her stellar work as editor-in-chief of Esports and the Law. An interview with Zavian, who is also General Counsel of USA Lacrosse as well as a GW Law professor, follows below.
Question: How did you get drawn into the esports/law niche?
Answer: As an athlete, I horned my competitive juices in middle school and high school on the track team. This was simultaneous with my involvement in the debate team and theatre. Following my high school graduation, I worked at the Maryland racetracks within the marketing department while attending the University of Maryland. It happened to be a robust year for Terp players going pro and some of my friends were meeting with agents to fulfil their NFL dreams. This led me to focus on sports, international law, and contracts when I entered law school.
Q: How does esports differ from video gaming?
A: The difference between the two is important, especially when one overlays the law. In general, video gaming is entertainment, bringing enjoyment and relaxation to the user. Conversely, esports, aka electronic sports, is truly competitive gaming for prize money or a trophy. As lawsuits become more prevalent in this space, deciding if the matter fits into entertainment verses sports will likely yield the difference between winning or losing a suit.
Q: Given your background in the labor side of sports, is there a chance we might see more union activity among gamers?
A: My initial introduction to this space occurred when some gamers from New York City contacted me because they believed they were not receiving monies due. My first reaction was, “What do you do?” This was a decade ago…and look how far we have come. However, the gamers, unfortunately, are still dealing with the same issues like lack of timely payments, safe working conditions, and ownership of their intellectual property. While I believe we will see a union in the U.S., the global aspect of the sport brings some difficulty to the union voting and certification process.
Q: What kind of trends do you expect with sports betting and esports?
A: I expect betting and esports to become synonymous. Lootboxes is only the first step…not the final step. Unfortunately, I do believe games will bring our youth into habits of betting (small bets at first), which will only mean their adulthood would be more likely to show gambling addiction habits.
Q: As a parent of a video gamer, how have you taken your knowledge in this space and applied to his learnings?
A: I am concerned, as a professor and parent, of how technology companies are gamifying learning in K-12 grades. Who said learning must be fun? Perhaps understanding that the technology companies are marketing themselves as ‘edtech’ entities as well as marketing their ‘gamifying education portals’ to school districts at an alarming rate. Our districts are paying for edtech learning software while the edtech companies are collecting/selling data on our youth. If anything, the edtech (really technology companies) should be paying us, the parents. All of this is done with no proof of success (better reading and math scores). Unless our reading or math skills are going to increase double digits because of these edtech platforms, I am inclined to go back to the pencil and paper method, that has served us well…and keeps our brain in the loop.
Q: Can you tell us a bit about your new podcast, Esportslawshow.com?
A: Allowing esportsandthelaw.com to focus on specific case law is important to the community. In addition, each podcast has the opportunity to bring these cases to life, to discuss trends of the future, to hear from outside experts, and to consider the future of the industry, all of which is best done in conversation. We look forward to having our readers join in on these conversations, while focusing on the same goals we had with ESL – being the thought leader in the space.
