Media: Multiple teams suffering from Valve's sticker revenue changes

HLTV have released an article reporting on the decline of teams' sticker-based income following IEM Cologne. "This is a catastrophe for the CS scene," one organization owner, whose team exited in Stage 1 and received half of $120,000, puts it bluntly.

SINNERS co-founder Moritz "Askadar" Straube also laments, "You based your calculations on something that was obvious to you because it had been like this for close to a decade at this point," likely referring to player salaries and other financial projections. In addition to the overall revenue decline, the mandatory 50/50 split of said revenue between organizations and players may also negate previously negotiated terms between the parties.

Another Stage 1 team evidently shelled out a large sum for a player they'd hoped would help get them to the Major. Their plan was to recoup the steep transfer cost via sticker revenue, but the "opportunity has now largely disappeared." Yet another team corroborates the negative impact of these changes, as they claim to earn just $100 a day from the once lucrative sticker revenue stream.

The new system is clearly hurting teams in the lower echelons of Tier 1 and below, but what will Valve do to stop it?