Madden's NFL Exclusivity in Jeopardy in Supreme Court Case? - RaychelSnr's Blog

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RaychelSnr's Blog

Madden's NFL Exclusivity in Jeopardy in Supreme Court Case? Stuck

Posted on March 6, 2009 at 09:25 AM.

(14)

This is an article I wrote for MM:

EA Sports signed an exclusivity deal with the NFL some years ago which put an end to all competition on the NFL video games front. Thanks to a case being taken by the US Supreme Court, that deal and many others like it could be in jeopardy.

Read More - Madden's NFL Exclusivity in Jeopardy?

Comments

# 1 mastershake88 @ Mar 6

interesting, very interesting find mmChris... the day may come where democracy will breathe over games my friend.

# 2 rudyjuly2 @ Mar 6

Has the Supreme Court agreed to hear this case? I think only 15% of cases ever get heard by them.

# 3 clarkerots @ Mar 6

I find it fascinating and extremely ironic that I've been hoping for years that the exclusive deal would be done so that 2K Sports could make another football game. Now, when it looks like Madden 10 will finally be the game that everyone's been looking for, the deal is in jeopardy. The irony!

# 4 TDKing @ Mar 6

Irony? or do they know soemthing ? Maybe that's why they are trying so hard with Madden 10! hmmm.....

# 5 SBartlett @ Mar 6

kool

# 6 DubTrey1 @ Mar 6

It would be wonderful if all exclusivity was gone - Plus, I think TDKing may be on to something.... Let's hope anyway -

# 7 thmst30 @ Mar 6

I'm confused. It appears that case has to do with Reebok and NFL headware? How does that affect game licenses?

# 8 Goffs @ Mar 6

i hope so!

# 9 SBartlett @ Mar 6

reebok having exclusive headwear can have a socio cultural impact. kids, H.S. programs try to emulate the pros - any other headgear could be seen as inferior in the eyes of these programs who try to copy the pros. There was a case on this about Riddel and the NFL and the helmets. The plaintiffs lost though because Riddel and the NFL didn't do anything wrong by signing exclusive 1 year deals for helmets each year - it wasn't monopolizing anything. It as good biz practice by both organizations. I would like to see the details of this Reebok and NFL case.

# 10 TimLawNYC @ Mar 8

The Supreme Court is hearing arguments in this case. And without getting too bogged down in the complex details, one of the core issues in this case is the NFL's status as an entity. American Needle is basically arguing that the League violates federal antitrust laws by giving exclusive licenses. This is actually true--exclusive licenses generally lead to antitrust violations. The NFL is arguing that it is a single entity, and a single entity cannot conspire with itself to restrain trade, so if this argument wins there can be no antitrust violation. American needle responds that the NFL is actually made up of 32 separate entities (the teams) which have conspired together in order to sell licenses as a single entity.

So essentially, if the SCOTUS agrees that the NFL is one single entity, then the League (and all other sports leagues) can sell exclusive rights and licenses without worry that they are violating antitrust laws. If the Court finds that the NFL is really 32 separate entities, then exclusive licenses (like the ones awarded to Reebok for apparel and to EA and 2K Sports for video games) will be illegal. Possibly even more dramatic would be the fact that the NFL would likely no longer be able to sell licenses at all--each individual team would separately license the rights to its own logo, players, and merchandise. So the Denver Broncos might license Nike to make their merchandise, while the Miami Dolphins stay with reebok and the 49ers go with American Needle. Each TEAM would arguably then be allowed to sell its own exclusive license. This could actually complicate things for gaming, because now anybody who wanted to make a game like Madden would need to negotiate separately with each team in order to put them in the game. So one team could opt out or refuse to participate, a la Barry Bonds (aka John Young). You might see a fictional team take the place of teh Dallas Cowboys, if the Cowboys and EA don't reach a deal.

So in some ways, a ruling for American Needle could be really good for gaming (we'd lose the exclusive licenses) but could also end up being bad, because it would be more difficult to license a game including all pro teams. In any case, given the current makeup and recent history of the Supreme Court on antitrust issues, it seems likely to me that American Needle loses this case (even though I personally think they have a very strong argument). So if I were a betting man, I'd wager that nothing is going to change as a result of this case.

# 11 RainEXwIPERblade @ Mar 8

I hope all this means that 2K can make football games again...thats all i ask for

# 12 cowboy_kmoney @ Mar 8

Man that would be good for the gaming world and even better for 2Ksports.

# 13 jhoff80 @ Mar 9

Who cares about exclusives in the NFL, have you played AllPro 2k8? Horrible game and 2k just doesn't seem to have it for football anymore.

What's more important is the implications this might have on baseball. The only option for 360 owners for baseball is a subpar game, which even if you prefer 2k5 to Madden, the worst football game is far better than the only 360 option for baseball.