The NCAA-EA Sports Divorce: Now What?

[Neverwhere]

Favorite part of that read:

Quote:

Shed a tear, sock-color-obsessed online roster makers

while linking to OS NCAA forums.

[JLoco11]

A few things to keep in mind, because some people are really going on off on a tangent now that the NCAA is removed from the equation:

1 - Schools that may want an extra cut of the proceeds, are not going to raise the bar too high where they get cut out of the picture. Imagine Notre Dame saying they want 1 Billion dollars for their likeness?

EA will say Hell NO, use SOUTH BEND as the team name without their likeness (similar to how Jordan was almost never in the Live series or Barry Bonds was removed from baseball games for leaving the union), and ND would lose out on potential revenue. Big teams may ask for more, but they won't bite the hand that feeds them.

2 - Celebrations and infractions MAY return, but remember, do schools really want to have their students portrayed as having infractions? Do you really think a school like ND or Stanford or Army/Navy would agree to suspending kids from school for various reasons?

Doubtful. I can't imagine some of the more protective schools allowing their athletes to be portrayed that way. They will want infractions tos tay out of the game.

Celebrations may return, but not over the top ideas like doing the worm on the floor or throat slashes. It will be school centric celebrations like we've always had.

[Captain Fear]

I think the better question is why did EA need the NCAA in the game in the first place? If EA can just continue making the same game without the NCAA then why even use them? According to everything i have read schools and conferences negotiate their own rights to be included. Why would EA pay the NCAA basically for nothing?

[SpartyParty11]

I think there was no chance for a college basketball game to come out. They stopped making the series because 1. they weren't making that much money from it and 2. EA got in trouble for having their players look too much like the real players. I know the NCAA has the right to March Madness but they stopped calling the games March Madness for years, it was always NCAA College Basketball.

I also don't believe College Football 15 will be able to add more teams/bowls/jerseys etc. Why? Licensing. Yes, NCAA has a lot of power but each school and stadium has their own license. That's probably why you still won't see UAB's stadium in there, or the Pinstripe Bowl. I think the series will look similar to what they have now, except without the NCAA name

[DorianDonP]

2. If O’Bannon wins his case, judges and juries aren’t likely to look very kindly on anything that appears to be a sneaky way of sidestepping paying college athletes.

Don't agree with this. They cannot stop roster editing from existing. That's like taking roster editing and sharing out of NBA 2K, so that someone can't create a draft class with real life players.

[noles367]

Quote: Originally Posted by JLoco11

What's sad, is that most consumers & customers do not understand the ramifications of the lawsuit or what it entails. That article did an excellent job discussing the legal implications in a simple way. Absent minded people think O'Bannon and Keller just want money. Clueless people think EA should win for the sole reason to continue college football games. Ignorant people think this lawsuit is just EA screwing over people. Blinded fans think that college kids deserve more than what they've already been entitled to. When the dust settles on the lawsuit, college athletics and video games will change permanently, either in a good way or a bad way. And the majority of people I listed in the examples above, will have no clue why.

Mark me down as "clueless". I am happy there are plans to continue the series, at least in the short term.

[JLoco11]

Quote: Originally Posted by Captain Fear

I think the better question is why did EA need the NCAA in the game in the first place? If EA can just continue making the same game without the NCAA then why even use them? According to everything i have read schools and conferences negotiate their own rights to be included. Why would EA pay the NCAA basically for nothing?

For the name. CLC doesn't sound like a football game (although that is the major trademark needed). NCAA is the most recognizable form of "college football". It mixes in with NFL, MLB, NHL etc.

Imagine a game called Professional Baseball, without acknowledging MLB. Adding the acronym most commonly referred to college football was a selling point. But as we see now, it does nothing for the game nor does it stop the game from existing.

Imagine taking Madden off NFL games. Madden has nothing to do with the NFL anymore other than the video game, so it's merely marketing.

[NateDogPack12]

Am I the only one who believes this could actually lead to a better football game?

-Player Discipline
-Realistic Injuries / Medical Redshirts
-More Customization

Seems like a win-win to me.