NCAA Punts on Athlete Likeness Monetization, College Games Still Not Viable

[biletnikoff]

players are getting paid whether we know it or not.
and EA is obviously already working on something or they wouldnt be teasing with KH or the facebook page.


Something else should be leaked before summer I would imagine

[BizDevConglomerate]

All of the players should be paid, not just the top flight kids

[KSUowls]

Quote: Originally Posted by itsbigmike

Tuition is excessive for college, there is no doubt about that. I know that first hand, as well. However, the fact that they are getting an athletic scholarship doesn't mean that they don't also deserve compensation for people using their likeness in video games. Would it be miniscule? Yeah, probably. However, it's still money that they deserve. Companies simply cannot use you for something like a video game without your consent. I feel the same way when schools sell the starting quarterback's jersey in their book stores, but they don't put a name on it, thus skirting the issue that they're continuing to profit directly on the back of their players without having to pay them for it. Athletes aren't by definition an employee, but kids on Power 5 teams are very, very valuable to the universities. College football, and to a much lesser extent, college basketball, help pay for the entire athletic budget and then some for schools. Even a school like Western Michigan would not be able to have other sports without their football program bringing in revenue -- even if it's still not enough to cover the athletic budget -- and the players should be compensated for that, too, above and beyond the scholarship to school. This also says nothing of the fact that many athletes are pushed into easy classes that don't really prepare them for anything after college, should professional sports not work out. We need only look at UNC for that sort of thing, but it goes on at schools both large and small. Or the kids who have injuries that leave them unable to perform on the field, costing them their scholarships. Or the kids that can't eat because the amateur status doesn't allow them to make enough money to pay for meals -- as Kemba Walker described when he was still playing basketball for the University of Connecticut. Yes, scholarships are fantastic for getting kids out of the inner-city and they're also fantastic for kids whose families could feasibly afford their kid's tuitions. But to just want to stop the compensation there, when these universities are pulling in millions upon millions of dollars -- or in the case of the NCAA, billions -- to me feels short-sighted . Especially when athletic directors are giving themselves raises on top of raises, it feels unfair for the kids that are actually, you know, sacrificing their physical well being in both the immediate and distant future. Whether people want to consider them employees or not, they bring value to their schools beyond their scholarship costs. And, I admit, figuring out what that value would be on a per-player basis is a nightmare to try to suss out. Obviously some players are worth more than others, some schools worth more than others, and some sports worth more than others. I don't have all the answers on that. Still, I'd rather they try to figure that out, instead of just saying that it's too hard to figure out and then throwing up their hands and asserting that the current system is the most fair. I disagree with that notion.

This logic lacks consistency in my opinion, or maybe it just ignores the part where in order for a person to receive compensation from another party then that party has to get something in return. I believe that you agree these athletes are receiving compensation for their likeness. So, why are they able to receive compensation equivalent to hundreds of thousands in compensation? Obviously it's because they provide their universities a product to sell and profit on. In exchange for that compensation the university is selling the athlete's work/likeness every Saturday in the fall with ticket sales and TV contracts.

You mentioned that you would want compensation if someone used your likeness to make a profit. Lets assume that you work for an employer who uses your likeness for profit. You are valuable to that employer because of your likeness and they compensate you for that. Well, at that point it doesn't matter what the company does with your likeness, it's what they are paying you for. Even if they decide to license out that license to another company you are still being compensated for use of your likeness.

I often see the argument that these universities are making millions/billions. You're right the level of compensation from university to athlete isn't 1:1. It isn't 1:1 for any other working person in the world either so I don't see why we should treat college athletes any different. Even in the NFL the most lucrative contract does not compare to the income received by the team owner.