Ubisoft is opening up Rainbow Six Siege Minor tournaments to more third-party organizers in 2019.

Rainbow Six Esports Director François-Xavier Dénièle says it is a chance to test new approaches to tournaments and enter new markets.

Long-term planning suggests Ubisoft may be testing partnerships and how they work best before an effort to launch into China.

Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six Siege esports program is adding new third-party event organizers to its 2019 calendar, with an aim to expand the reach of the game to new regions and test new ideas in how tournaments can be operated.

That’s according to Siege Esports Director François-Xavier Dénièle, who told The Esports Observer that the new schedule of Minor tournaments through the year – outlined during the Six Invitational tournament in Montréal on Feb. 17 – is about much more than just sharing logos and production teams.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I would say the perfect example for the evolution of our Pro League system is Japan.” [/perfectpullquote]

“It will be the first time we open our ecosystem to new partners,” Dénièle told The Esports Observer. “It’s a risk we’re taking, but at the same time it’s giving us the chance for a new approach to tournaments and to go into a new market.”

In 2019, the new market is Eastern Europe, granting One Game Agency the rights to a Minor tournament in Croatia.

Related Article: Rainbow Six Esports Gets Viewership Boost from Six Invitational

“For us, we want to continue to develop with our vision,” says Dénièle. “It’s about trying to find the right balance between keeping the lead at Ubisoft, but to also give the tools and the rules to our external partners to develop in a new region.”

Siege now operates its own national tournaments in 18 different nations, led by Ubisoft’s large footprint of local game distribution and marketing offices around the world. Dénièle says this network has allowed them to move quickly but also take the time to understand what the right approach for each region should be.

“I would say the perfect example for the evolution of our Pro League system is Japan,” said Dénièle. “Let’s be honest, Japan was not a well-known market for esport except for fighting games. Now Japan is our number two country in terms of community, and we have Nora-Rengu in the [Six Invitational] semi-finals, so we found the right approach.”

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“For me, [that challenge] is the introduction of one big region we are still missing – China.” [/perfectpullquote]

On the industry debate over whether it is best to control an esport within the game publisher’s business or to let third-party organizers run things with minimal oversight, Dénièle feels Ubisoft is finding a third way.

“It’s testing. All the time. Having a layer of competition done by Ubisoft directly, and having some parts done by external partners,” said Dénièle. “There are different formats of competition and I’m really happy to see the market growing in different ways because it means there is space for everyone.”

In part, testing new third-party tournaments in some regions may be a form of preparation toward trying to enter the biggest market Siege is currently unrepresented in.