MLG referral program details and participation
The past 24 hours have seen an almost unprecedented amount of discussion, debate and backlash in reaction to Major League Gaming’s announcement Monday that the Winter Arena tournament will be a $20, pay-per-view only affair.
Attached to the $20 price tag is a three-day pass that gives access to five live streams in high definition, all part of MLG's new "Premium streaming experience". With exception of the Dr Pepper MLG Ultimate Access channel (which will be free to watch for any viewer), each of the streams are served advertisement-free. Features include being able to watch as many of the streams as you want simultaneously, access to VODs immediately after matches complete and quick access to brackets and scores.
A poll on TeamLiquid.net shows that an overwhelming percentage (~88%) disapprove of the pay-per-view fee, answering "no" to the question "Will you pay for this?". The response from a second poll, asking users if they would purchase the subscription if it was $10 instead of $20 and if MLG Gold subscribers would earn a discount bringing the fee down to $5, was slightly more lenient: 70% in favor, 30% not.
This is what MLG is touting as their Premium streaming experience (click for live demo)
Many fans have expressed their disapproval of MLG’s announcement by vowing to watch Assembly Winter instead, which runs the same weekend, instead of ponying up the $20.
MLG CEO Sundance DiGiovanni made this tweet late Tuesday afternoon stating that some "thing"is in the works for MLG Gold subscription holders. Soon afterward, a new Winter Arena PPV Q&A page went up on MLG's website, and in it, states that MLG Gold members will receive a $5 discount off theregular $20 price.
MLG Referral Program
As part of the announcement, MLG also introduced the “MLG Referral Program”, which according to the FAQ, was “designed [...] as a way to give money back to the eSports community and support its ongoing growth.”
Information obtained by ESFI's Brent Ruiz Tuesday describes the details of the program and what organizations get in return for referral signups:
- $1 per referral, up to 999 referrals (5% return)
- $2 per referral, after 1000 referrals (10% return)
As an example, a member of the program would receive $3,000 if they were to refer 2,000 people to purchase a pay-per-view pass, while MLG would make $37,000.
Team participation
A number of organizations received a proposal in their email inboxes on Monday being invited to participate. Some of them have chosen to participate while others have declined.
One of the teams who won’t be participating is Evil Geniuses. The team’s director, Alex Garfield, made a post on TeamLiquid.net following the initial announcement that describes why the team won’t be joining in on the program. Garfield echos the rest of the community’s thoughts in the chief reason for their not participating being the $20 price point being too high, suggesting a $10 fee would be more appropriate. Garfield concludes his post by posing four courses of action to the community.
Notable teams who also declined to participate include Team Liquid, Quantic Gaming, Fnatic and Complexity Gaming. However, other well-known teams like vVv Gaming and Team Dignitas already are promoting the program on their websites.
“We should not judge the price point until we see the product,” vVv Gaming owner Jerry “LordJerith” Prochazka told ESFI. “MLG is adding a lot of new features so this discussion is premature and further highlights the dramatic nature of this debate.” Prochazka mentioned he would discuss the topic further in tonight’s “The Loser’s Bracket” podcast.
Granted, we've yet to see what an actual live broadcast experience will be like, but you can get a good idea of what the new streaming experience feature-set by checking out this demo.
Some teams weren’t invited altogether. Team ReIGN manager Frank Fields made a tweet confirming that, and CheckSix Gaming the same.
For reference, @ReignSC2 was not invited into MLG's referral program. Take from that what you will.
— Frank Fields (@FFMirhi) February 14, 2012
MLG declined to comment about who the proposals were sent to and what scope of organizations are eligible. An item listed on the PPV F.A.Q. on MajorLeagueGaming.com notes that anyone can send an email if they are interested in participating.
MLG CEO Sundance DiGiovanni will appear on “Live on Three” on Wednesday at 4:30pm PST / 7:30pm EST to answer the concerns of the community.
