I'd also like to take a second to shed some more light onto this scenario. There have been a few comments on here talking both for and against the program so here are some talking points to consider.

"My/Their grades are going to suffer because of this!"

Without getting into the topic of whether or not GPAs even mean anything after college let's simply talk about how other students handle extracurricular activities and why this line of thinking makes absolutely zero sense. Take a look at basically any college in America right now and you'll find people who are either playing sports, participating in a club, working a part time (and even some full time) job, or already gaming either competitively or casually.

The point I'm trying to get across here is people already do things with their time outside of only studying, this should not be looked at in any other way.

"WTF Blizzard? No support for the pro scene, but you'll support this?"

Of course I had an initial knee jerk reaction to the announcement in a very similar way but after taking a couple of breaths I realized something awesome. If Blizzard is willing to put forth this kind of money and just think of what's coming in the future for eSports.

Now I know some of you might be thinking, "But Steve, you're talking about possibilities versus an actuality. We've been grinding out games and playing in tournaments for nearly a year now with very little to show for it."

To that I ask you to look at other games. To look at other competitive scenes and realize that even in the youth of this game we've already made it leaps and bounds further than others have at their starts and there's no plans to stop. Remember, I'm right here with you, I've been involved in running many of the tournaments that are used as evidence.

I know it has been tough on some of you, and I know that sadly we've even lost a few very strong players due to financial and other real world responsibilities that took priority over the fledgling scene, but we are growing and Blizzard has taken notice. Just give it a bit more time if you can.