Capcom Upsets the Street Fighter Community With Its “Licensing Structure Policy”

The fighting game community (FGC) is built on the backbone of its competitive events and the global pandemic has not done the community any favors in the past couple of years. While things are slowly returning to normalcy, Capcom released its licensing structure policy which prevents events from having over $2,000 USD in prize pools for a single event. Even if sponsorship bonuses are factored in, the limit is set at $5,000 USD. In response, the FGC has lashed out against Capcom.

Why Capcom’s Licensing Structure Policy is problematic

According to the new guidelines, the prize pool for events must be set and clearly disclosed in advance. The event prize pool must be under $2,000 USD per event. In addition to the prize pool restriction:

• The total prize pool within any given 12-month period must be under $10,000 USD.

• The sponsorship contributions must be under $5,000 USD per Event.

• The total sponsorship contributions within any given 12-month period must be under $20,000 USD.

The regulations also restrict cable or over-the-air broadcasts and any form of merchandising using Capcom’s assets. The publisher will be gaining the rights to use community event photos, videos, and stream footage for its own marketing and potentially other marketing material, major licensing fees, and other benefits from bigger events.

To summarize the licensing structure policy:

• You have to get approval from Capcom

• You also have to abide by Capcom’s prize pool rules

• You cannot have any affiliation with Capcom or broadcast your event freely

According to Digital Entertainment and Ecommerce Law’s analysis of the licensing structure, tournament organizers can not promote events using Capcom logos. Organizers can’t even mention Street Fighter in the event name.

The new policy did not sit well with the fighting game community and many have asked for changes. Capcom has issued an official response regarding the new Licensing Structure Policy on Twitter.

The policy prevents tournament organizers from hosting bigger events or hosting events more frequently due to the prize pool restrictions. Hosting events under the policy also prevents tournaments from generating revenue from streaming platforms. Merchandising opportunities are also taken away by Capcom, making tournaments difficult to monetize for tournament organizers. With most competitions being forcibly downscaled due to the restrictions, the annual Capcom Cup, which most recently had a prize pool of $200,000, becomes the only appealing event in terms of prize money.

Capcom’s response to the community

Capcom stated in its response to the community that the aim of the policy was to make running Street Fighter V: Champions Edition events easier. The publisher feels that by having rules in place, events can get approved much faster.

Capcom is currently reviewing the feedback and will follow up regarding the policy in a future update. While Capcom is potentially restricting the growth of its franchise within the fighting game community, other titles like King of Fighters are actively working with the community to promote esports events. King of Fighters developer Shin Nihon Kikaku Corp recently launched its Esports Support Program with fewer restrictions in comparison to Capcom’s new policy while also enabling prize pool additions and sponsorships.

Subscribe to AFK Gaming's Newsletter

Get a weekly recap of all the latest developments in the global esports industry with our esports business insights newsletter: AFK Weekly

Subscribe for free to receive insights, analysis and opinions on the biggest developments in esports business, provided by our team of experienced journalists in collaboration with thought leaders across the industry.