Emabulator
07-22-2009, 08:11 AM
The NCAA is no stranger to criticism when in comes to the way they handle student athletes, often chided for putting profits ahead of a quality education. More recently the NCAA has come under attack from former student athletes that are seeking compensation for use of their likeness in video games, DVDs and other things such as merchandise sales. As GamePolitics reports former UCLA power forward Ed O'Bannon is the lead plaintiff in a class action suit focused on this issue. Vermont Law School professor Michael McCann had this to say on the matter in his Sports Law column (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/michael_mccann/07/21/ncaa/) for Sports Illustrated/CNN:
There are two core areas of law implicated by O'Bannon v. NCAA.
First, by requiring student-athletes to forgo their identity rights in perpetuity, the NCAA has allegedly restrained trade in violation of the Sherman Act... Student-athletes, but for their authorization of the NCAA to license their images and likenesses, would be able to negotiate their own licensing deals after leaving college... For example, if former student-athletes could negotiate their own licensing deals, multiple video game publishers could publish games featuring ex-players. More games could enhance technological innovation and lower prices for video game consumers.
Second... the [former players argue that] NCAA has deprived them of their "right of publicity." The right of publicity refers to the property interest of a person's name or likeness, i.e. one's image, voice or even signature...
Full story at GamePolitics. (http://www.gamepolitics.com/2009/07/22/video-game-licensing-key-issue-former-ucla-star-leads-new-lawsuit-against-ncaa)
There are two core areas of law implicated by O'Bannon v. NCAA.
First, by requiring student-athletes to forgo their identity rights in perpetuity, the NCAA has allegedly restrained trade in violation of the Sherman Act... Student-athletes, but for their authorization of the NCAA to license their images and likenesses, would be able to negotiate their own licensing deals after leaving college... For example, if former student-athletes could negotiate their own licensing deals, multiple video game publishers could publish games featuring ex-players. More games could enhance technological innovation and lower prices for video game consumers.
Second... the [former players argue that] NCAA has deprived them of their "right of publicity." The right of publicity refers to the property interest of a person's name or likeness, i.e. one's image, voice or even signature...
Full story at GamePolitics. (http://www.gamepolitics.com/2009/07/22/video-game-licensing-key-issue-former-ucla-star-leads-new-lawsuit-against-ncaa)