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Appeals court sides with ex-NFL players in Madden likeness suit
A federal appeals court struck down Electronic Arts' appeal to dismiss a 2010 lawsuit in which retired NFL players alleged that the publisher used their likenesses without permission in Madden NFL 09. A three-judge panel unanimously declined EA's motion to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds of First Amendment protections under "incidental use." Madden 09 included over 140 historic NFL teams as well as the stats and positions of thousands of retired athletes to celebrate the series' 20th anniversary, and EA allegedly altered jersey numbers and removed the players' names to avoid paying licensing fees, according to the August 2010 lawsuit. The judges referred to another recent likeness lawsuit in the opinion, in which former college athletes sued EA in May 2009 over the use of their likenesses in NCAA Basketball and NCAA Football games. EA proposed a $40 million settlement to that lawsuit in September 2013, resulting in those players earning up to $951 for each year their likeness was featured in the games. The publisher added $8 million in expenses related to that lawsuit in May 2014. EA introduced similar First Amendment-based defenses in its appeal for the retired NFL players lawsuit save for one additional argument: That the likenesses were protected under the First Amendment as incidental use. The judges "held that Electronic Arts's use of the former players' likenesses was not incidental because it was central to Electronic Arts's main commercial purpose: to create a realistic virtual simulation of football games involving current and former National Football League teams." The decision upholds a California court's March 2012 dismissal of EA's attempt to prevent the suit from going to court. Among the plaintiffs listed in the lawsuit is Sam Keller, a former Arizona State, Nebraska and Oakland Raiders quarterback that filed the original likeness lawsuit related to the publisher's college sports games. [Image: EA]
Game on: NFL likeness lawsuit against EA moving forward
A motion filed by EA to dismiss a class-action lawsuit filed against it by 6,000 retired NFL players has failed, reports Gamasutra. As you'll recall, the players that filed the suit claimed that their likenesses were used in Madden 09 without permission or compensation. While the player's names and numbers were changed, vital and identifiable statistics were left unchanged.Rather than argue that it in fact didn't replicate real-world players without authorization, EA's motion to dismiss postulated that Madden 09's use of player likenesses was covered by the First Amendment, and therefore did not require consent or compensation. Since this motion was denied, the case will move on to court. Plaintiffs are seeking legal fees, damages and all profits generated through the use of said plaintiffs' likenesses.
Retired NFL players sue EA over likenesses in Madden 09
The likenesses of the historic teams in Madden 09 were apparently a little too lifelike, as over 6,000 retired NFL players have come together and filed a class-action lawsuit against EA. According to IGN, the lawsuit claims that EA used the stats and positions of past players, but changed their uniform numbers and removed their names in order to get around having to pay licensing fees. The lawsuit also takes aim at the customization options available, which let players freely edit in the real names and uniform numbers of these classic athletes. "The only significant detail that EA changes from the real-life retired NFL players is their jersey number," the suit claims. "Despite EA's 'scrambling' of the retired NFL players' numbers, the games are designed so that consumers of the Madden NFL video game franchise will have no difficulty identifying who the 'historic' players are." The lawsuit seeks damages associated with the "deprivation and violation of publicity rights."
NFL Hall of Famer Jim Brown appeals dismissed lawsuit against EA
Jim Brown, nine-season running back for the Cleveland Browns and NFL Hall of Fame inductee, filed a lawsuit against Electronic Arts in 2008 for using his likeness in Madden '09 without first obtaining his permission. Last September, U.S. District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper (who passed away in January from lymphoma) ruled that EA was protected by First Amendment rights -- a decision which Brown is now attempting to overturn in a San Francisco appellate court. Brown requested the review earlier this week at the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. According to the Associated Press, EA representative Jeff Brown emailed the New York Times, saying the industry juggernaut is "confident" the ruling won't change. So, for those of you keeping score: EA's Jeff Brown says Jim Brown from the Browns won't win.
'Big Dawg' vs. Madden lawsuit dismissed
According to a report on Cleveland.com, the lawsuit filed against Electronic Arts by Cleveland Browns fan John "Big Dawg" Thompson has been dismissed. The suit had been filed on the grounds that EA featured Thompson's likeness in Madden NFL 09 without his permission. More specifically, the game featured the likeness of Thompson wearing a dog mask and orange hat, a costume he's worn to Cleveland Browns home games for years. Thompson's lawyer, Alan Parker, noted that his client was happy the matter was closed, but noted that details of the dismissal are confidential. Thompson had been seeking damages "in excess of $25,000," so that's one thing he might be happy about. If his Big Dawg mask is sporting some gold teeth and a diamond encrusted hat during the next Browns home game, we'll know for sure.
Mask-wearing fan suing EA over likeness in Madden 09
He might be known for wearing a bug-eyed dog mask and representing the most hardcore of Cleveland Browns fans, but John "Big Dawg" Thompson isn't down with his likeness being used in EA Sports' Madden NFL 09. No, not just because it misrepresents his jersey's number (98 in real life, 92 in the game) -- it's because EA Sports is using his likeness without ever having actually asked permission.So John Thompson (not to be confused with that other Thompson) has filed a complaint at the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas seeking restitution "in excess of $25,000." He's also looking to block EA's ability to sell the game or use "the Big Dawg character" without his expressed permission in the future. We hate to tell you, John, but that game kinda came out last year.
Walmart sells boy 'redneck' version of Madden 09
Put yourself in this position. Imagine you're a young boy (somewhere around, say, 13 years old) and have saved up all your Christmas money to purchase a shiny new Xbox 360. You're now overjoyed to hear that your dad has finally got around to taking you to the local Walmart to make your Xbox purchase. After deciding on a console, you pick out Madden 09 as your first Xbox 360 game purchase. Now, still imagining you're this boy, you and your pa make your way back home where you setup your newly purchased Xbox. Caught up in the excitement, you rip open the (scotch tape sealed) Madden 09 packaging and are taken back because Madden 09 doesn't quite look like Madden 09. It looks something like the "redneck sh*t" you see above. Tears run down your cheek as you realize Walmart has failed you. Somehow, you purchased what you thought was a new copy of Madden, but was a returned and previously used copy with the disc swapped out. Oh the horror!Scariest part, this is a true story.
Madden 09 predicts Pittsburgh Steelers victory in Super Bowl XLIII
The Super Bowl is only a few days away, and as expected, EA has run a Super Bowl simulation using this year's Madden. This year, the publisher expects the Pittsburgh Steelers to achieve a narrow victory over the Arizona Cardinals, with a final score of 28-24.The annual Madden prediction has been fairly successful, with the exception of last year's surprise victory from the New York Giants: 2004 - Madden: Patriots ; Reality: Patriots 2005 - Madden: Patriots ; Reality: Patriots 2006 - Madden: Steelers ; Reality: Steelers 2007 - Madden: Colts ; Reality: Colts 2008 - Madden: Patriots ; Reality: Giants Super Bowl XLIII kicks off February 1st, when the NY Giants will somehow manage to pull off an even more startling victory this year. Go NY!
Madden tramples Wii Fit in Q3 global sales
The Top Global Markets sales data from NPD, Chart-Track and Enterbrain (via GameDaily) reveals that Madden NFL 09 blitzed the global charts to become the best selling game in the third quarter of '08 (that's July to September). Trailing Madden were Wii Fit and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. Also, showing that the franchise still has some Pikachu-charged power behind it, Pokémon Platinum battled in fourth place with 1.4 million units sold, despite being only available in Japan. Mario Kart Wii rounded out the top five.Certainly the most interesting question about the sales figures is: Where would Wii Fit be if it was actually meeting demand? Madden's sales were (obviously) US heavy, while Wii Fit had a regional sales spread based on Wii's install base. Find the full sales figures after the break.
EA financial report: WAR did great, layoffs happening anyway
EA released its quarterly financial statements (PDF warning on both that and the Source link) yesterday, and while the typical MMO player will not care about most of the data present, we thought a couple things buried in there were worth mentioning. First of all, EA bragged about the previously-revealed 800,000 subscriber number for Warhammer Online. Madden NFL 09 and Spore also did quite well, but despite those successes, the company still posted a net loss of $310 million.Possibly as a result, it announced a "cost reduction plan" (doublespeak, anyone?) "which will include the elimination of approximately 6% of the Company's workforce," which Scott Jennings suggests is around 540 people. No details were given about which teams would lose people. We suppose new intellectual properties like Dead Space and Mirror's Edge aren't cheap to develop, and neither is Star Wars: The Old Republic (the existence of which was proudly touted in the report), but it's striking that even amidst sales success by WAR and other titles, the company is still shedding employees.[Via Broken Toys]
EA loses $310 million in Q209, 6% of employees being let go
Electronic Arts has revealed its second quarter fiscal results (ending Sept. 30) ... and things aren't pretty. The company lost $310 million in the quarter, another big hit following Q1's $95 million loss. Highlights from the quarter were the sales of Madden NFL 09 (4.5 million sold), Spore (2 million sold) and Warhammer Online (1.2 million sold). Unfortunately, EA's continuing hard times will impact its employees. The company plans to let go of 6% of its work force, which amounts to about 600 jobs. The next two quarters are when EA normally really starts bringing in the cash -- not that it'll mean much to those who'll be unemployed soon.[Via GameDaily]
Deal: PSP Limited Edition Madden NFL 09 bundle for $170
With the PSP Brite coming out today, it seems like retailers are ready to slash the prices of their old inventory. The Madden NFL 09 Entertainment Pack, which includes a cool blue limited edition PSP, is today's Amazon Goldbox deal. Originally retailing for $199.99, you can now purchase exactly one bundle (offer is limited to one per customer) at the discounted price of $169.98 with free shipping. Like all Goldbox deals, the discount disappears when the allotted number of the product has been sold. Take advantage of the deal here.What? You want to see an unboxing before you buy it? We've got the unboxing gallery for you below.[Thanks, David B.!]%Gallery-29520%
Madden NFL 09 Pink to support breast cancer foundation
EA Sports announced today that Madden NFL 09 Pink will be sold at Target, with a portion of the proceeds from the sale going to the Deanna Favre HOPE Foundation. The box will be available during the month of October (National Breast Cancer Awareness Month) and can also be purchased at Target.com and NFLShop.com.We called EA Sports to find out how this "new" art still has Favre in his Packers uniform. Turns out the pink ribbon design is actually part of a clear overlay inside the cover. Meaning, consumers can completely remove it if they want, or place the Favre Jets cover in behind it. Behold, the freedom of choice.
Sun. deals: Gift cards with Pure, Silent Hill and more
Here we go again, a weekly gaming deals roundup thanks to X3F. We search for 360 deals, because we like saving money and because we care about your bank account. So, let's do this. This week at Best Buy, you can grab a free $10 gift card with the purchase of Pure and a free Silent Hill DVD with purchase of Silent Hill: Homecoming. Target has CoD4, Battlefield: Bad Company, and LEGO Indiana Jones for $39. Our retailer friends over at Circuit City are giving out free Pyramid keychains with Silent Hill: Homecoming, free $10 gift cards with both Pure and Baja: Edge of Control, Rock Band bundles for $139, and they have wireless controllers for $5 off. And the bonus deal this week is over at Circuit City where, with the purchase of either Rock Band, Ninja Gaiden II, Tiger Woods 09 or Madden 09, you can score a free $20 gift card. W00t to that.
NPD: Top 5 best-selling PS3 games from January to August 08
The NPD, in collaboration with Gamasutra, disclosed the top 5 bestsellers for each platform today, including the PS3. Without further ado, let's take a look at what they are: Grand Theft Auto IV Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Madden NFL 09 Gran Turismo 5: Prologue Note that specific sales numbers were not provided and the final tally does not include any collector's editions, games sold via digital distribution or games bundled with a system. No one is really surprised that GTA IV, MGS4 and Madden 09 made it to the top of the charts. However, Gamasutra remarks on the tremendous momentum Call of Duty 4 has had so far in 2008, especially considering the game was released early November of 2007. They were also surprised to see Gran Turismo 5: Prologue beating out Devil May Cry 4; they even speculate that if the sales on the PS Store for Gran Turismo 5: Prologue were counted, it might have even trumped the sales of the PS3 version of Madden 09. Did any of these games surprise you guys? Is there a game you would have liked to see on the chart? Fire away in the comments below.
Analyst: Wii is 'inhospitable' for third parties
Just when you thought the embers were finally beginning to cool regarding the oft-contested state of third-party game sales on the Wii, leave it to some analyst to breathe generously on the dying fire and get it going again once more. Cowen Group's Doug Creutz is just such an analyst, as he calls Nintendo's console a "relatively inhospitable platform for third-party publishers."Offering an example, Creutz points out that notwithstanding Madden 09's recent NPD dominance, the Wii version of EA's annual gridiron push sold significantly less compared to those on the PS3 and Xbox 360. How significant? Despite a larger console install base, the Wii version sold 87 percent fewer copies than those sold for the Xbox 360, and 79 percent less than those for the PS3 according to the analyst -- his life is obviously split between advising investors where to put their cash and stirring fanboys into a tizzy.
August NPD: Madden sacks the competition
Wow, talk about dominating the list, Madden NFL 09 has crushed the competition in August, even though it released in the middle of the month. That hasn't stopped it from selling well over 2 million copies, across all platforms. As for hardware, well, it's basically the same story:- DS: 518.3K 89.7K (-14.75%)- Wii: 453K 102K (-18.37%)- PSP: 253K 31.3K (12.49%) - Xbox 360: 195.2K 9.6K (-4.68%)- PS3: 185.4K 39.5K (-17.56%) - PS2: 144.1K 11.4K (-7.33%)Head past the break for the software figures.
No curse, but Madden 09 has bugs
With the NFL regular season just barely underway, there's plenty of time for the Madden Curse to sink its hooks into Mr. Favre's vulnerable ankle, but for now, EA is busy squashing a host of bugs that have crawled out of the bowels of latest edition of Madden. The major pest is a freezing issue that can crop up during play calling and highlight screens, reports IGN. Senior designer Ian Cummings has documented most, if not all known bugs on the game's Producer Blog, recommending various workarounds while the team puts together a patch. EA is targeting "less than a 3 week turnaround" from last Tuesday for the update to be released. So put a big checkmark next to the 16th and cross your fingers.
Download this Favre-Jets cover for Madden 09
Yeah, we all know the story -- Brett Favre pulling a fast one out of retirement and signing up with the Jets. While football fans may have been ecstatic over the news, it was a move that left Maddenites with an outdated cover for Madden NFL 09. However, not wanting fans to remain disappointed, EA has a backup play to counter Favre's surprise blitz.If you head on over to EA's website, you can download a free, brand new cover for Madden 09 which features Favre sporting a Jets uniform. The covers are high quality PDFs, so you just have to make sure you have a good printer and some glossy paper to make the cover look legit. Might want to stop by Kinkos for that. Download the cover and replace it with the old one if you so desire. [Thanks WhiteSpy!]
Metareview: Madden NFL 09 All-Play
This year's Madden NFL 09 All-Play on the Wii has gotten a lot of buzz. The title has tried to cater to the Wii's casual crowd. Yet, it also attempts to keep its hardcore audience and not alienate them with all kinds of casual additions. It's a tough line to toe. Has EA Sports done it?On to the review scores! Nintendo Power (90/100) is of the mind the game is the sports title to beat on Wii: "So while EA may not have lived up to its marketing directive, it's succeeded in creating quite possibly the best, most fully featured sports sim available on the Wii." [Sept 2008, p.85] IGN (86/100) says it's good, but hardcore gamers might not like some of the changes: "Madden 09 has done a great job of giving every type of player a little to love, but for the Wii-only hardcore out there, you're going to need to realize that times are changing, and Nintendo is synonymous with "everybody" now" GameDaily (80/100) thinks the game is easily recommendable: "Even though it lacks complexity, Madden NFL 09 on the Wii achieves more than enough to earn a recommendation. Its user-friendly controls and various modes will keep you scoring touchdowns well into next season." Games Radar (80/100) believes the game is a solid title: "Even so, Madden NFL 09 All Play is blazing an important trail to reintroduce lost football fans to the franchise. It's an undeniably fun experience that will please many in its target audience, and even includes roster updates and online play. Not to mention we're really starting to like a little waggle with our football. We may be old curmudgeons, but fun is fun, and Madden does a lot more right than not."
