From the perspective of a Dota die-hard, teams like Cloud9 and owners like Jack Etienne are hardly disinterested observers, and they represent less an inevitable evolution for competitive gaming than a corporate vision that lots of monied investors and hopeful team owners want to bring to fruition. Conflating the arrival of venture capital investment and sponsor-friendly esports with progress is an easy way to turn-off a lot of esports devotees —and Dota fans in particular, whose enthusiasm for in-app esports purchases like Compendiums and spectator passes has given Dota a unique, fan-supported business model. That is probably one reason why response to Partin's piece has been so cool from many of the people who closely follow the game.The argument that Dota 2 is headed for "niche" status seems to rest on three indicators: First, it's not attracting investment from established teams or outside investors. Second, the number of major tournaments on the Dota calendar is in decline. Third, the player base is starting to contract.It's entirely possible that the much of the esports economy beyond LoL is more bubble than bedrock.
Without the exposure offered by major broadcast deals, it's unlikely that Dota 2 will benefit much from the new audiences eSports will reach in the coming years. This is a future for Dota 2 in which small, but dedicated, community of spectators still find meaning in watching Dota 2, and professionals play not for money or fame, but because they love the game. This is not necessarily a bad thing; a fantasy of "pure" competition, unsullied by greed, is alluring indeed.
What seems more likely is that in 2020, Dota 2 will look a lot more like today's fighting games circuit than the LCS [League of Legends Championship Series]. In contrast to the vast apparatus of sponsors, media rights, and franchises that make up LCS and will make up Overwatch League, Dota 2 will mainly be built on the passion of fans who are willing to share their eyes (and, of course, their wallets). As long as this is the case, then there will be professional Dota 2, but it will be increasingly isolated from the rest of esports.