Products You May Like
Chung “Blitzchung” Ng Wai, a professional Hearthstone player, shared his support during an interview for the Hong Kong protest against the Fugitive Offenders amendment bill, which threatens residents’ civil liberties. In an effort to appease the Chinese government and hold on to the country’s playerbase, Activision Blizzard banned him from competing in eSport competitions, even taking away $3,000 he already won.
That created an international incident, and now politicians on both sides of the aisle are slamming the company for its attempt to appease the Chinese Communist Party and Tencent, a Chinese video game company that owns a 4.9 percent stake in Activision Blizzard.
Vice covers the story more thoroughly, if you want to learn more. Attempts by Western companies to placate the Chinese government has been in the news recently, and it’s interesting that one of the biggest blowups yet has come from eSports, of all places.