Balancing monopolisation and innovation in the esports industry: searching for aurea mediocritas between public and private interests in intellectual property rights

Esports has become an important phenomenon of the digital age. Despite the rapid development of the esports industry, its legal regulation involves numerous issues. One of the key issues is the monopoly position of video game IP rightsholders who have exclusive rights to their products, which in turn limits the development of independent esports disciplines. This article analyses the factors that contribute to monopolisation in esports; it considers legal and economic models of combating monopoly, and it develops recommendations for improving legislative regulation of this area. It also analyses practical examples, suggests new approaches to optimising legal regulation for esports in EU law, and examines ways to achieve a balance between protecting the rights of video game rightsholders and players (esportspeople) on one side, and the freedom to develop independent esports disciplines on the other.