It’s not often that we can legitimately link to an ESPN article here. EPSN’s Lester Munson provides a great write-up of the stakes involved in American Needle v. National Football League.
For those not following the American Needle case, American Needle manufacturer ballcaps with NFL team logos. The NFL eventually granted an exclusive license for such wares to an American Needle competitor and American Needle filed suit under the Sherman Antitrust Act. Following a NFL victory in both the district and circuit courts on the basis of the NFL-promoted single entity theory, American Needle filed a cert petition, which was granted by the High Court late last month.
Given the significant implications to everyone associated with professional franchises, the amici briefs should be fascinating and not just for the big names involved.
Hey, there are many good reasons for MTTLR blog to link to ESPN. One of our greatest blog posts ever was about the IP issues in the publication of the top 25 polls and BCS standings. ESPN is starting a legal battle to get websites to take down an illegally obtained nude video of one of its female tv personalities. ESPNs online broadcasting involves a lot of bandwidth control issues. Plus their recent articles about Michigan football may be online defamation.