There’s no denying that eSports is now a big part of gaming whether you like it or not; and now Japan has recognized how legitimate it is by starting to issue “pro licenses” to pro players starting in 2018. This is being done to bypass Japan’s strict gambling laws, so that the pros are separated from the general gaming public.

This was reported earlier today by Bloomberg reporter, Yuji Nakaumra who made the announcement on Twitter.

Big e-sports news from Japan: industry to start issuing “pro licenses” to e-sports players from 2018. Goal is to bypass Japan’s strict gambling laws by separating “pros” from general public. This paves way for Japan to become e-sports powerhousehttps://t.co/HBMxPWE018

— Yuji Nakamura (@ynakamura56) December 13, 2017

In case you couldn’t see the tweet, it reads:

Big e-sports news from Japan: industry to start issuing “pro licenses” to e-sports players from 2018. Goal is to bypass Japan’s strict gambling laws by separating “pros” from general public. This paves way for Japan to become e-sports powerhouse

Additionally, Twitter user HiFight also revealed the five games being issued pro licenses for and they are: Winning Eleven 2018, Street Fighter V Arcade Edition, Tekken 7, Puzzle & Dragon, Monster Strike.

This looks like a good news but it sounds super weird
5 titles that will have pro licenses are
Winning Eleven 2018
SFVAE
Tekken 7
Puzzle & Dragon
Monster Strike https://t.co/OtaSQDRIBS

— HiFight(ハイファイト) (@HiFightTH) December 13, 2017

Given the money involved and the betting that occurs in eSports, pro licenses are a good thing, no?

Do you approve of this and should other countries follow suit? Or is this unnecessary red tape for everyone involved?