Lawsuit over NCAA licensing practices

Came across this the other day and have been meaning to give it a mention.

Lawyers for the former U.C.L.A. basketball star Ed O’Bannon filed a class-action lawsuit against the N.C.A.A. on Tuesday, claiming former athletes should be compensated for the use of their images and likenesses in television advertisements, video games and apparel.

The lawsuit, which did not include a dollar amount sought, will bring into focus how the N.C.A.A. handles player images, especially after players leave college and are no longer bound by N.C.A.A. rules, and its vast licensing deals, which are estimated at about $4 billion. None of that money goes to the former players whose images, jersey numbers and likenesses are used.

“We really couldn’t believe that these compensation practices still existed in any kind of industry,” said Jon T. King, a partner at Hausfeld, a Washington-based law firm that is representing O’Bannon. “We do antitrust cases in all sorts of industries, and when we learned about this disparity, it was literally shocking to us.”

[…]

Hausfeld said that the lawsuit would end up seeking a “huge sum of money” because the N.C.A.A. and its licensing partners are booming businesses that are only getting bigger. For the N.C.A.A., the crux of the issue will be the “08-3a form” that student-athletes sign, giving up their names, likenesses and rights to receive compensation from the N.C.A.A. and its third-party partners.

“It’s a one-year contract that ends when the student is no longer a student-athlete,” Hausfeld said. Two former college football players have previously filed suits over the use of athletes’ images in video games.

Andrew Zimbalist, an economist specializing in sports at Smith College, predicted that the case would give the N.C.A.A. an opportunity to re-evaluate its views on amateurism.

“I think this is a fairly clear-cut ethical issue here that the N.C.A.A. is asking for trouble on,” Zimbalist said. “They need to retreat and reassess what they’re doing. As they do that, they have to look at the phony and false way they try to delineate what amateurism is.”

He added: “This is a wedge issue here. It’s a foot in the door to open all sort of question about the hybrid model of the N.C.A.A.”

Boy howdy does this have the potential to wreak havoc on collegiate sports. Long overdue and well-deserved havoc, mind you. Keep an eye on this one. Thanks to Chad for the link.

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