8th Circuit Victory for Fantasy Sports Leagues
Posted in Appeals, Fantasy Sports, Intellectual Property
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld a 2006 decision that allowed fantasy baseball leagues to use Major League Baseball (”MLB”) player names and statistics without paying a licensing fee to the MLB or MLB Players Association. The court said that the information used by fantasy leagues, specifically player names and stats, are part of the public domain and any First Amendment rights trump the players’ right to control their publicity.
This decision will, of course, begin to effect other fantasy sports leagues that currently pay licensing fees to their respective associations and could drastically alter the $1.5 Billion fantasy sports gaming industry.
The decision, in its entirety, can be found here.
For more information read: USAToday
