[image credit : Commons]
According to the Japan Times, the Japanese government is launching an economic plan to help expand the esports economy with the goal of generating $2.6B (¥285B) in economic benefits a year by 2025. The plan looks to expand Japan’s esports industry with private sector help in revitalizing regional economies and increase social participation–especially people with disabilities,
While Japan has been a major player in the video game market, with the third-largest revenue share at $18.6B, esports hasn’t yet followed suit. This is due in large part to a Japanese law against releasing cash prizes above ¥100K ($931), if promoting a product during the tournament.
However, the Japanese Esports Union (JESU) has negotiated to give players licenses to be considered professional esports players in Japan that allows them to participate in tournaments whose prize pool goes higher than the law allows. However, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry wants to do more to help form the basis of what Japan’s esports economy should look like.
The reports goes on to state that the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry is seeking to work with companies and legal experts, both domestic and internationally, to draw up guidelines for promoting Japan’s esports industry, which lacks experience and expertise in facilitating large prize purse tournaments while dealing with the intellectual property rights and other issues associated with game developers.
