I am in agreement with both you and @Grey_Devil on this. Its an unenviable position and yet totally enviable at the same time.
They can’t win, regardless of their stance. Which is why the smart choice would have been some incredibly minimal slap on the wrist…much akin to how sports leagues give some multi million dollar athlete a $5000 fine and call it a day. Blizz should have said “We are fining Blitz $100.”
It will be interesting to see if Team China continues to find it more useful(or simply intoxicating) to be able to wield soft-ish power in situations like this; or whether they ultimately decide that it’s scaring the multinationals before their usefulness has been exhausted and go for a great firewall-driven approach:
I suspect that they care less about Blizzard and similar culture industry players(compared to companies actually worth turning upside down and tech-transferring until their pockets are empty); but architecturally they have the option of creating an environment where Netease/Blizzard, and all Blizzard communications on Chinese social media and readily accessible inside the firewall, are 100% party line compliant; while the reward for being such…harmonious…corporate citizens is being permitted such messages as are required for good PR on the outside to be used, so long as they are are only exposed through channels accessible on the outside and uninviting or outright blocked internally.
Not clear that Blizzard is worth the effort; but there are plenty of companies whose cooperation is of greater value.
here is the thing…the issue is much to @anon50609448 points out…trying to push negative consequences isn’t really a good way to deter “bad” behavior. I put that in quotes because its more about unwanted/undesired as opposed to actually bad. but…and its a big but…governments like China have never catered nor caved to pressures from capitalism (see North Korea and Cuba for starters).
Corporations cannot take a stand and expect results. They can however uphold their “rules” or “save face” while also showing support to human beings.
I am biased because I do love Blizzard’s IPs and have gotten to know numerous employees through my status as a Blizzard influencer. I do think they hold dear their core values. Those higher ups (especially Activision leadership) are perhaps less tied to those same values…unfortunately. I think someone should have been smarter here and rode the fence.
And yet, this is the reason people are mad, not because they enforced their rules, but because the heavy handed response appears to have been an attempt to placate or possibly even have been at the direction of China®
Heck, even if this wasn’t true, they know this is the nature of the backlash they’re facing and they’re desperately trying not to pick a side.
But instead, they’re doubling down.
I think you’re right in that they don’t care about Blizzard or the NBA per se, but they probably realize that now that as multinationals are increasingly targeting the Chinese market, and now that Chinese people have had a taste of the fruits of capitalism, they just want to make sure everybody understand what the rules are if they want to retain access to that market, my feeling is they would absolutely cut off Blizzard now hoping they send a message to everybody else.
The cited rule in question is mealy-mouthed weasel-wording that boils down to “don’t do anything we don’t like”.
p.12, Section 6.1 (o): Engaging in any act that, in Blizzard’s sole discretion, brings you into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages Blizzard image will result in removal from Grandmasters and reduction of the player’s prize total to $0 USD, in addition to other remedies that may be provided for under the Handbook and Blizzard’s Website Terms.
Nothing in there about “don’t bring up politics” or even “don’t be off-topic”. Just “don’t do anything that makes us look bad”, and, “in Blizzard’s sole discretion”, they decided that supporting the Hong Kong protesters on-air in the Asia-Pacific region would make Blizzard look bad.
My understanding is that the tweets reporting this were using faked screenshots.
Explain how cutting the suspension in half and giving his total winnings doubling down?
I don’t think that posting/chanting/signing “Free Hong Kong” is going to have any more effect on Beijing than “thoughts and prayers” have on the NRA.
I would like to think so.
But I don’t.
Blizzard has suspended Casey Chambers, Corwin Dark, and TJammer – American University Hearthstone team players – for six months after the trio displayed a “Free Hong Kong, Boycott Blizz” sign in a streamed competition.
If we’re being generous and assume that Blizzard simply enforced the rules with Blitzchung without any consideration for China (Which, considering that at the time they also cut ties with the casters seems VERY generous) and given the backlash they’ve received, which included disapproval from their own employees:
Continuing to ban people for the same behavior, which comes as a protest to their behavior is in my opinion doubling down.
If this isn’t doubling down, it certainly is inviting the Streissand Effect to some mysterious end.
Big corporations don’t want to fight, they just want to sit in the corner and make money. But sometimes it just isn’t possible to “not piss anybody off.” Then the choice comes down to “Who am I going to piss off.” Just like Rush says, “If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.”
It wasn’t quite the same behavior. These guys’ sign also said BOYCOTT BLIZZARD.
I miss them so much.
Yes. Let us all hammer on Blizzard and on the NBA about China until Hong Kong is free. For lo! I have no ties to the industries that prop-up this authoritarian dictatorship, and thus am completely absolved in my criticism.
-sent from my iPhone
The whole “let he who has not sinned” thing makes perfect sense when you are talking about stoning a member of your community to death. It starts to verge on absurd when you apply it to large corporations.
Good job Blizzard, you have both sides of the aisle mad at you on Capitol Hill. That’s no mean feat these days.
Yeah, I suppose -
My cynicism meter is pretty much pegged here, though. Sooner or later the Chinese tanks will roll in Hong Kong, and nothing will ensue other than “thoughts and prayers”.
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