With the release date of SC2 approaching, Blizzard decided to give up on KeSPA and turn to GomTV instead, because they have similar values and goals, as they experienced in their previous collaborations. He wrote that KeSPA did not respect Blizzard's intellectual property rights and that they offered no solutions to the problem themselves. The day after, Blizzard president Mike Morhaime wrote a letter to the Korean e-Sports fans, explaining the situation. Also, other parties would be having a grace period until August so that their ongoing tournaments could conclude smoothly. At the same time, mentions of a Global Starcraft II league, Starcraft II World Championship, as well as Clan Battles and Streak Battles were made, with more information to be released later. Other channels would still be able to get broadcasting rights after having negotiated with GomTV, however. May 26th 2010, Blizzard and Gretech (GomTV) signed a partnership agreement giving GomTV exclusive rights to broadcast e-Sports matches of Blizzard games for the next three years. Nonetheless, KeSPA was willing to resume the negotiations again. Moreover, they said they had been trying to negotiate, but Blizzard had not been willing unless KeSPA agreed to their demands. In the beginning of May, KeSPA made a statement about the negotiations in which they disclosed the extent of Blizzard's claims and said they felt the claims were unacceptable. In April, Blizzard stated that after three years of fruitless negotiations with KeSPA, they were going to cease the talks and begin looking for a new partner in South Korea. Such statements were not, however, made by any other pro-gamers in Korea, something that could possibly be related to the fight between KeSPA and Blizzard. In late February 2010, IdrA stated that he was a SC2 player and had permission from his coaches to play it during practice time. Although Blizzard Korea attributes the cancellation to internal scheduling misunderstandings, an anonymous source from a pro-game team implied that this was a continuation of the power struggle between Blizzard and KeSPA. The invitation, however, was turned down by most of the teams and the event was cancelled. In February 2010, the president of Blizzard, Mike Morhaime, visited Korea and wanted to do a small private event where he would deliver the beta to the Korean pro-gamers and teams directly. The fight, however, continued into the arena of SC2. In the end, it resulted in Blizzard co-operating with GomTV, and sponsoring the GOM Classic tournament instead.Īfter Blizzard partnered up with GomTV, several teams announced they were not going to play in the tournament, and it was widely believed that was something decided by KeSPA as a response to Blizzard's co-operation with GomTV. Blizzard then approached OGN and MBC (the broadcasting networks broadcasting Brood War matches), but did not manage to strike any deals there either. In 2008, Blizzard presumably approached KeSPA seeking some kind of co-operation, but they were seemingly turned down. KeSPA vs Blizzard Brood War negotiations and GOM Classic Īlthough most of what's been going on between KeSPA (Korean e-Sports Player's Association) and Blizzard is not released to the public, it has been evident that things have not been too amicable between them. As such, South Korea has been in a unique position, because the South Korean pro-scene has in a way shaped what goals Blizzard is aiming at. WWI in Seoul in May 2007 was the place where Blizzard announced SC2 and it's been clear that SC2 aspires to become just as much an e-Sport as Brood War has been in Korea. That's what roughly 99% of Liquipedia 1 is all about. Needless to say, South Korea has a history of a unique Brood War pro-gaming scene. History of the South Korean SC2 pro-scene Background: Pre-beta times