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0 Subject: Fantasy Companies v. MLB: Court of Appeals

Posted by: Toral
- [575542418] Tue, Oct 16, 2007, 18:25

I think there was a thread about the original decision in this case but I couldn't find it.

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals today upheld CBC Distribution¹s previous ruling against Major League Baseball Advanced Media to use statistics without a license in all of its fantasy sports games. The decision was unanimous on the rights of publicity and First Amendment issues, however, the decision in the St. Louis, Missouri court came back 2-1 on another issue, possibly opening the door for one last fight on this historic judgement.
I can't make a link to it for some reason but here's the URL for the Rotoworld story: http://www.rotoworld.com/content/features/column.aspx?sport=MLB&columnid=127&articleid=29239
1Toral
      ID: 575542418
      Tue, Oct 16, 2007, 18:34
Background from NY Times story.
2biliruben
      ID: 579411512
      Wed, Oct 17, 2007, 17:58
Good.
3Toral
      ID: 575542418
      Thu, Oct 18, 2007, 14:02
Doubleplusgood.
4blue hen
      ID: 16322314
      Thu, Oct 18, 2007, 14:22
Translation: It is now harder to run a non-major fantasy site. Means less competition, means fewer niche fantasy games.
5Toral
      ID: 575542418
      Thu, Oct 18, 2007, 14:35
Translation: It is now harder to run a non-major fantasy site. Means less competition, means fewer niche fantasy games.

Just the opposite. Text-based games can now compete without having to be licensed. It is now easier. If you can provide a good game without having to offer things like players' pictures, or actual nicknames of teams (like "Yankees") then you can offer a good game without having to buy a licence from MLB.

bh: Should we assume that your comments here are the sole property of your employer, and given as such?
6Toral
      ID: 575542418
      Thu, Oct 18, 2007, 14:56
One thing I wanted to note here: MLB was hoist by its own petard.

A couple decades ago, licensed MLB game companies (like S-O-M) started to offer old-timer seasons. They had agreed to pay money to MLB just to use the names of current players, under threat which they did not want to litigate. But nothing to old-timers. A bunch of maybe decripit but not yet dead old-timers pooled their (usually meagre) resources and sued MLB and the game companies, claiming that when game companies make some money games using actual player names and stats, they ought to get a share.

As the decision said, in Gionfriddo (still alive at the time), and a name that will mean a lot to Brooklyn Dodger fans, MLB argued that Al Gionfriddo's stats were in the public domain. And won the case.

So MLB was hoist by its own petard. For those who are unfamilar with expression, see Wikipedia on "pecard":
"The word remains in modern usage in the phrase to be hoist by one's own petard, which means "to be harmed by one's own plan to harm someone else" or "to fall in one's own trap". Shakespeare coined the now proverbial phrase in Hamlet.

Toral


7Toral
      ID: 575542418
      Thu, Oct 18, 2007, 15:38
MLB argued that Al Gionfriddo's stats were in the public domain.

Case of, what I will call, Reverso where one types the opposite of what one as trying to say.

MLB of course argued that Gionfriddo's stats *were not* in the public domain.

Toral
8blue hen
      ID: 16322314
      Thu, Oct 18, 2007, 15:47
Or that. Your definition is better.

I had it backwards - hadn't been paying attention.

And comments here are my own. As a player of the niche games, I am a fan of those sites.
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