Written by Jeff Nixon – posted January 24, 2011
The “image” of a professional football player is something NFL owners continue to profit from long after a player has hung up his cleats and played his last game. We saw proof of that this past Sunday when they showed the vintage films of Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Gale Sayers, Mike Ditka, Paul Hornung, Walter Peyton and other Green Bay and Chicago greats.
And how do they profit?
They do it through the sale of products which include such things as football cards, posters, football jerseys and other memorabilia including intellectual property that is produced, copywrited and sold by NFL Films.
By the year 2000, NFL Films had already filmed 7,725 games. They have the world’s largest sports film library containing more than 100 million feet of archival NFL footage.
The NFL and NFL Films continue to sell these historic films and documentaries that use former player images to create the “Legacy” of the NFL. Please visit the NFL Films website and read what they say about these films.
Sports Illustrated has called NFL Films “The most effective propaganda organization in the History of Corporate America.”
The New Yorker said “The images of the Lombardi years in Green Bay were captured and spread wide by NFL Films – the fledgling propaganda office of the Pete Rozelle papacy – the snow, the muddy faces, the steam escaping from tooth-short mouths played back in slow motion made the Packers into a romantic team of legend.”
Former players should be thankful for the vision that Ed Sabol had when he created NFL Films in 1964. He captured some of the most amazing performances by the pioneers of professional football. Steve Sabol continues the legacy of his father.
Television networks, corporations and fans have paid millions and millions of dollars for the right to use and purchase these films. On their own website, NFL Films calls their 200,000 square foot facility one of the last great, self-contained “Hollywood” studios.
But let’s not forget one important fact – Professional football players have been the actors and the stars in these films, but unlike the members of the Screen Actors Guild, we are not receiving any royalties or payments after the show ended for us. Even though retired player performances continue to be used to sell and promote the NFL brand……….we get nothing!
While NFL Films dramatizes the beauty of a slow-motion spiraling football dropping ever so gently into the hands of a receiver for a touchdown, we can’t forget that they have – and continue to – profit from the blood, sweat and tears shed in those games, the violent collisions, the injuries and the trauma. We had no stunt doubles in these films and the blood wasn’t fake. We can’t forget that this was reality, not fantasy…..although the NFL is now doing a great job generating money in that business sector too!
NFL Films has also gone digital. Fans can now purchase these historic films in DVD format on the NFL Shop.com website and the Warner Home Video website.
The NFL has a reputation for enforcing their IP rights very strictly against any infringers. Courts have typically sided with the NFL. Since they own the copyright to the telecast, they have the right to charge a fee to anyone who wants to use or buy game highlights, documentaries, bloopers and other films and dvds.
In the standard NFL Player Contract, the “active” players currently give the owners the right to use their images to promote the NFL, but does that also give them the right to continue using our image after we leave the game?
Several retired players have filed a Class Action lawsuit against NFL Films. The lawsuit challenges the unauthorized use of the retired players’ names, images, and likenesses to promote the NFL brand and otherwise produce revenue for the NFL. The goal of the Class Action is to resolve the rights of as many retired NFL football players as possible, regardless of level of celebrity, prominence in NFL Films, or how long they played in the league.
The Court has allowed the case to proceed saying that, “notwithstanding the language of the contracts – which likely included waivers permitting the “images” and names to be used in NFL Films productions – it’s possible that the league could have been unjustly enriched.”
In a somewhat related issue, the President of Fourth and Goal -Bruce Laird, sent a “White Paper” letter to Roger Goodell calling on the NFL to support the NFL Alumni Association by contributing League and Club Intellectual Property Rights for group retired player programs.
Roger Goodell responded to the White Paper by saying that “you have outlined a thoughtful approach and one that we could cooperate with in principle.” He went on to say that “a key point will be the extent to which your proposal has broad support among retired players. If it does, it could be very meaningful.”
Retired players are still waiting for something meaningful!
Roger Goodell has to understand one simple fact. If he gave the NFL Alumni and its members a contribution of League and Club Intellectual Property rights, he would have damn near unanimous and broad support of every retired player.
George Martin has a huge task in front of him and he needs our support to get the wheels turning on this issue. As part of the NFL Alumni Business plan, he will be working to secure a piece of the NFL’s Intellectual Property Rights for retired players. Fourth and Goal initiated this discussion with Roger Goodell and the league, so you can bet your bottom dollar we will be watching this closely and doing everything in our power to make it a reality.
Remember………….there is strength in numbers. Sign up to be a member of the NFL Alumni today by going to the website and using a credit card to join. We need you now!
Here is the website link: NFL Alumni Membership
