Esports has seen an improvement and moderate paced acceptance in becoming a sport, while gradually warding off the “it’s just playing video games” misconception – I mean a billion dollars and over in revenue, with hundreds of millions in viewership worldwide with careers being explored and lives being changed? What is there not to observe, appreciate and accept, right?!
This season covered by Gamers Change Lives has seen various personalities holding very critical and high positions with esports businesses, sharing their knowledge on the business with regards to setting up one, which is what this season’s theme is about. For this episode we have the executive co-director of the United States Esports Association, Mr. Eliot J. Oreskovic, who shares his knowledge around the business and other important aspects to note when setting up an esports venture.
Eliot’s introduction to gaming was through strategy games, as he admits he’s not that much of a gamer. His esports entry however, was through a friend who was in an entrepreneurship competition, and after making numbers for the friend they landed second place. Fast forward into speaking with nonprofits and then setting up an esports lounge.
The USEA, as an organization from its founding in 2018 and actively moving in 2020 played the role of mirroring other sports federations do for amateur development for esports. After joining the global federation as the US member in 2020 and leaving in March 2022, they had to come up with ways to sustain the organization. They being a 501 C3 would mean they would have to go in for donations, but that would be won if they present a specific reason to have them awarded such funds. So there had to be the adaptation of what niche interest groups focus on, like the nonprofits, and fit them within the 501 C3 to make it look like that. So environmental issues, national security concerns and then fit into the esports context, to which they have had two programs be developed out of that. They are eSports Eco and National Esports Honor Society, with the Eco having a part to play within the UN Climate Change program, while national security program is their newest, which is being funded by the US Department of Homeland Security, giving holistic programming to college students.
With a little narrowing down into the environmental aspects of the program organized by the United States Esports Association, it highlights the use of electricity being the chief power supply for the technology used to play video games. Now it may not look like a problem, but the impact of what gaming computers can indirectly have on the environment is from the higher draw with their use of power which is six to eight times higher emissions than what a normal house computer may use.
So the goal is to support and offset the development and deployment of the use of technology that can remove the different emissions, because it is inescapable with electricity’s use in playing video games.
So with their association, Eliot looks to make an infrastructure to report on the different emissions; highlight estimations for the start before landing accuracies so they can get in the conversation of offsets at best, seeing that removal technology is not well rounded at the moment.
Media and information literacy is based out of a negotiation competition…But if you wanna do anything in the business of esports, negotiating is a part of it. — Eliot Oreskovic, Exec. Co-Director, United States Esports Association
The National Esports Honor Society program as stated to be tailored for college students moves in the direction of mentorship, where students will be hooked up with other students within the program and then make connections into the industry. With this students are being offered an opportunity to gain media and literacy skills, which is a valuable skill pertaining to the program, giving them a sense of civic responsibility and communal engagement. Further into the program students would be able identify the usefulness of the skills acquired, as they will know now how to succeed in esports.
The other component with this program is professional development. Through individual advisors who will be a part of the program, students will be able to develop their own professional toolkits. Through advice from career services, students interested in esports or professional development can be aided in either areas with adequate information and literature to help them kickstart their careers in either esports or pursue other opportunities in professional development.
Esports has helped create jobs for lots of people. Interested in knowing about the business side of esports? Listen to the Gamers Change Lives Podcast! We get experienced guests from all around the world featuring.
Written By Jeffrey Osei-Agyeman
