After ending the call with Stone, the atmosphere in the office immediately stabilized. Everyone was chatting and laughing, completely unfazed by the fax they had just received.
They even felt a bit embarrassed recalling their previous reaction, having been startled by a clearly fabricated fax. It was undignified and a disgrace to the great Korean nation.
Fortunately, because Lee Sang-hwa had also appeared somewhat foolish this time, everyone was in the same boat. Lee Sang-hwa himself ordered that the matter be kept strictly confidential, ensuring no outsiders would learn that the prestigious WCg organizing committee had been intimidated by a group of con artists’ fax.
However, as time dragged on, Lee Sang-hwa grew increasingly worried because Mr. Stone, who had promised a prompt reply, had not yet called back.
Lee Sang-hwa dared not inquire further, assuming that after confirming it was a scam, Mr. Stone found the entire incident amusing and didn't bother calling back to confirm.
It wasn't until three hours later that a notice, which shook the entire internet, was simultaneously released on the Blizzard Games official website, the 00 Games official website, and through all internal Blizzard Games email channels.
Concurrently, major esports clubs and professional players began receiving messages from Blizzard Games, plunging the entire esports scene into chaos.
These clubs and players, who were either preparing to travel to China or had already arrived, couldn't believe the news. The competition they had prepared for so long was simply canceled.
It was only at this point that the WCg organizing committee confirmed the news… followed by a barrage of verification calls flooding into the WCg organizing committee.
Even after receiving direct communication from Blizzard headquarters, many clubs and professional players still felt they might have been victims of fraud. They called the WCg organizing committee, attempting to ascertain the truth of the matter.
However, the WCg organizing committee was also in a state of bewilderment, completely unaware of what was happening in the world. President Lee Sang-hwa once again dialed Mr. Stone’s number.
“I’m sorry, I don’t even know how to call you to talk about this matter.” Mr. Stone’s opening words plunged Lee Sang-hwa into despair, as his tone indicated everything was real. Blizzard indeed did not intend to grant them authorization for any of their games and prohibited the WCg from using Blizzard games to host competitions.
“Why on earth? How can you people at Blizzard do this? We’ve been cooperating wonderfully, and we at WCg have brought Blizzard countless esports fans, leading to massive game downloads and purchases, and delivering substantial profits to you. Why are you prohibiting us from using Blizzard games for competitions at this time? Don’t you realize the WCg is set to begin in just over a week? Are you not stabbing us in the back and forcing our entire organizing committee to die? Even if you didn’t want to cooperate with us, you should have informed us months in advance. How can you do this!” Lee Sang-hwa's voice was filled with the desperation of a spurned lover.
Lee Sang-hwa had hoped to receive an explanation from Mr. Stone or to evoke some sense of guilt in him.
However, after his machine-gun-like outpouring, the other party's tone became somewhat cold. “Mr. Lee, if you question us like this, then I would like to ask you a question.”
“Isn't your sudden announcement, just over a week before the start of the competition, banning a certain number of club participants, causing the entire 00 club to withdraw from the WCg, similar to our actions? If you can do something like that, why can’t we at Blizzard?” Mr. Stone's words rendered Lee Sang-hwa speechless, and he couldn't think of a retort for a while. After a pause, he weakly replied, “These two matters are different. That was just one club, but we have a cooperative relationship, and this is a world-class competition. How can you compare them?”
“Alright, there’s no use talking to me about this. The matter has happened; you should accept the outcome,” Stone said.
“No, Mr. Stone, I believe there must be some misunderstanding. We should at least know what went wrong before we try to mediate. Can’t Mr. Lin give us a chance to correct our mistakes!” Lee Sang-hwa's attitude and posture were very humble.
“Old Li, for the sake of our many years of acquaintance, let me put it this way. I have two answers here: one is the official answer, and the other is the real answer. Which one do you want to hear?” Stone sighed.
“Um, could I hear both!” Lee Sang-hwa quickly replied.
“Fine, I’ll tell you. The official reason Blizzard Group announced externally is that your WCg’s last-minute rule changes caused significant losses to many clubs. It also led to a large number of professional players under Blizzard Games withdrawing from the crucial Global Finals, consequently preventing audiences from enjoying more exciting professional matches!”
“These players, clubs, and many spectators jointly protested to Blizzard headquarters. After a thorough evaluation of the incident, our headquarters deemed the WCg organizing committee's actions outrageous, severely infringing upon the interests of professional players and audiences, damaging Blizzard Group's reputation, and hindering the healthy development of the entire esports industry.”
“Therefore, to regulate the industry and promote its stable development, we have ultimately decided to terminate our cooperation with the WCg. We prohibit the WCg from using any Blizzard-related resources and further forbid their use in public competitions. Upon discovery, Blizzard Group will pursue legal action and initiate lawsuits against such behavior!”
“Alright, this is the official answer I can give you. Do you understand?” Stone asked.
“How is this possible? Just because of a small club… Mr. Stone, can’t you distinguish the importance of this? That was merely a small club, how can it be compared to our WCg?” Lee Sang-hwa asked indignantly.
These Americans, abandoning their cooperation with the glorious Korean WCg because of a Chinese club, had provided a crazy answer. He not only couldn't understand it but also couldn't accept it.
“I told you, this is the official answer. If you don’t accept it, then I have a real answer for you too!” Stone sighed.
“Then what is the real answer?” Lee Sang-hwa asked quickly.
“The real answer is that the controlling stake in our Blizzard Entertainment is held by a chairman named Huang He. Our big boss, you could say, is this Chairman Huang He!”
“And Huang He is also the chairman of the Jiangnan Group.”
“00 Network is a subsidiary of the Jiangnan Group, and the 00 Esports Club is also a subsidiary of 00 Network.”
“Therefore, the 00 Esports Club and our Blizzard Entertainment actually belong to the same person’s enterprise. You bullied Mr. Huang He’s 00 Esports Club, and you don’t allow him to retaliate against you using Blizzard Entertainment?”
“……” Lee Sang-hwa was completely stunned. He had no idea there was such a complex equity relationship. The 00 Esports Club had such deep ties with Blizzard. If he had known this earlier, he would never have acted so irrationally.
Well, no one should find this unbelievable, thinking that Lee Sang-hwa, as the esteemed chairman of the WCg organizing committee, would not know the relationship between Blizzard and the Jiangnan Group.
Firstly, as a member of the high-and-mighty WCg organizing committee, Lee Sang-hwa fundamentally felt no need to get too close to game manufacturers or to actively understand their equity structures… Lee Sang-hwa didn’t even know about the latest version changes in Blizzard games. He only needed to know which games were popular online and could be used to host competitions. He had no interest in anything else.
Secondly, Lee Sang-hwa actually entered the WCg organizing committee through the back door. He did not come from the esports industry himself but was more of a monk who joined midway, so he had limited understanding of the situation.
Finally, Huang He acquired Blizzard in his personal capacity, not under the name of the Jiangnan Group. Therefore, when many media outlets tallied the Jiangnan Group's vast empire, Blizzard was not included.
Furthermore, Huang He's acquisition was very low-key, and Blizzard was not a publicly traded company, so equity changes did not need to be immediately disclosed to the outside world. Unless one specifically inquired about equity changes at relevant institutions, Huang He's position within Blizzard Group would not be known. After all, Blizzard as a whole was still firmly controlled by Allen Adham, and Huang He visited Blizzard headquarters only a few times a year.
Considering all these factors, it was entirely normal and forgivable that Lee Sang-hwa did not know about the relationship between the 00 Esports Club and Blizzard.
After a long period of silence, Lee Sang-hwa finally spoke, “Mr. Stone, as a friend, what do you think we should do now?”
“I don’t know either. I only know that the chairman is extremely angry, and our president was reluctant to make such a risky decision. He argued with the chairman for a long time but couldn't change the chairman's decision and finally forced this order through!”
“So, the only thing you can do is to get the chairman, the 00 Esports Club, and 00 Network to stand down, forgive your actions, and voluntarily ask us to withdraw this announcement. Otherwise, there is no other way!”
“Alright, as a friend, this is all I can tell you. I’m taking a big risk saying this, so I can’t talk to you any further. Goodbye!” With that, Stone hung up the phone without hesitation, giving Lee Sang-hwa no opportunity to speak further!