PA ESC Responds to ESIC’s Investigation into Counter-Strike Bug Inquiry
HARRISBURG, Pa. (Monday, Sept. 28, 2020) – The Pennsylvania Esports Coalition (PA ESC) is monitoring and reviewing the information provided by the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC), a global not-for-profit membership organization focused on integrity and security of esports competitions, who today implicated 37 guilty parties in the exploitation of an in-game bug in the professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive game title. The sanctions issued by ESIC were a result of an ongoing investigation launched earlier this month.
In reaction to the ESIC report, PA ESC Executive Director Todd Kowalski said even as esports continues to grow across Pennsylvania, and throughout the country, the industry is not immune to cheating and other scandals.
“We have come a long way here in Pennsylvania in growing esports as a viable and safe activity that has true potential to bring economic and educational opportunities to the Commonwealth,” Kowalski said. “Unfortunately, the industry still lacks consistency relating to independent regulations and regulatory bodies.
“The Coalition applauds ESIC and their work on rooting out cheating and other activities that undermine the integrity of esports,” Kowalski added. “In 2018, we sought out a partnership with ESIC, and established a Memorandum of Understanding with the organization, to bring ESIC's established and respected presence in esports integrity to the Commonwealth, and to highlight the need for regulatory oversight and a code of ethics within esports here in Pennsylvania. We recognized early the great work ESIC has done, and continues to do, to ensure a safe and ethical esports industry, and its commitment to advocating for and implementing proven standards that protect the integrity of esports.”
Kowalski said that last year, the PA ESC went further in its commitment to protecting esports competitions by developing and adopting a set of integrity standards, entitled “E-tegrity,” that serves as the backdrop for esports competitions across the state. He said the current CS:GO scandal underscores just how important the Coalition’s “E-tegrity” standards are to ensure the validity of competitions here in the Keystone State, and the entire Mid-Atlantic region. He believes moving forward, the Coalition could serve as a clearinghouse and oversight entity for the industry, and help hold accountable any coach, player, organization or observer who wishes to cheat or misrepresent fair competitions.
“The PA Esports Coalition will continue to advocate for responsible rules that will protect the integrity of the esports industry,” he said. “When news breaks about massive cheating scandals in esports, it has the potential to limit or stop the progress the industry has made in gaining credibility among legislators and other elected officials. We encourage everyone to support our efforts to provide regulatory standards and accreditation that can help limit cheating and other activities that undermine the success of esports here in Pennsylvania.”
For more information, please contact Todd Kowalski at 215-589-8458, or via email at tkowalski@paesports.org.