Video game maker Electronic Arts has been in a legal battle for the last four years with former collegiate athletes who are suing them and the NCAA for profiting from their likenesses without compensating them. EA decided this week to settle the related suits that it is facing, and announced Thursday it has suspended production on the NCAA franchise.
According to usatoday.com:
“On a day when legal wrangling over the use of college athletes’ names and likenesses prompted video game manufacturer Electronic Arts to announce it will not publish a college football game for at least one year and settle a series of related lawsuits, the NCAA vowed to keep fighting on the issue for as long as necessary.
“EA announced Thursday afternoon it will not produce a college football game in 2014 and is ‘evaluating our plan for the future of the franchise.’ Within hours, a court filing and lawyers representing former and current college football and men’s basketball players said an agreement had been reached to settle claims against EA in three presumptive federal class-action lawsuits.”
This may be bad news to some fans, but it’s a good thing for the kids who are not compensated for the use of their likenesses in the games, while corporations profit from them. EA will likely transition the majority of users from NCAA Football to their pro football series Madden NFL, making this situation not much of loss for anyone.
EA’s willingness to settle may have broader implications for the NCAA, as they are the main target of the lawsuit. If the players are successful with their legal claims it could signal major changes for the rules of college football.
