SO MUCH FOR THE MONEY…THE PLAYERS BIG PAYDAY MAY BE COMING SOON: It seems like the NCAA just can't stay out of trouble these days. Last week we found out that NCAA investigators were probably guilty of obstruction of justice. Then this week a judge ruled that a class action lawsuit against the NCAA by Ed O’Bannon can proceed. The O'Bannon lawsuit is pretty convoluted, but it could help further erode the NCAA's power. The problem is that could take a while. Here to help explain it is my friend, the made-up non-lawyer questioner, for yet another legal Q&A. Q: So what is Ed O'Bannon suing for? A: When you play an NCAA sport, you have to sign a waiver that relinquishes your right to make money off your likeness as an NCAA athlete. The NCAA let EA Sports use those players' likenesses in video games, like the NCAA Football and NCAA March Madness series. The NCAA probably could have gotten away with this if they only used current players in these games, as college athletes don't usually have the inclination to sue people who could suspend them and don't have the money to pay for litigators. But EA and the NCAA got greedy. They used classic teams, like the 1996 UCLA Bruins basketball team. This caught the attention of former UCLA power forward Ed O'Bannon, who's now a car salesman outside Las Vegas. He doesn't work in sports anymore, so what does he have to lose by suing the NCAA for using his likeness? He later got Tyrone Prothro, the Alabama receiever whose leg injuries in college prevented him from having a pro career, Bill Russell, Oscar Robertson and others to join his suit. Q: But they signed those waivers giving up their right to use their own likenesses. A: This is where the Sherman Antitrust Act comes in. Today you can't get a bill preventing rich guys from doing bad stuff passed, because a majority of the House of Representatives thinks Atlas Shrugged is nonfiction. But a century ago you could! The Sherman Antitrust Act specifically bans artificially fixing prices, aiming to mean people and businesses are paid what they deserve. O'Bannon is alleging that if the NCAA didn't force him to sign this contract, then he could have gotten money from someone else (say, an EA competitor) to use his likeness. Thus, it essentially fixed the price of using his image at zero. Even if you consider players' scholarships adequate payment for their services, this still artificially depresses how much they're paid. If a judge agrees, the waiver would be considered an illegal restraint of trade under the act. Q: So is O'Bannon just suing on behalf of himself? A: No, he's suing on behalf of everyone whose likenesses are being improperly used by the NCAA. When there's a small, tangible group of people who are harmed in a case like this then you can simply add them all as co-plaintiffs. But if you've ever played NCAA Football or NCAA March Madness, you know that there are thousands of players whose likenesses the NCAA uses. Since it would be practically impossible to get every athlete in those video games to join the lawsuits, O'Bannon is leading a class action lawsuit. The BIG KAHUNA is the fact that the players could get HALF of the TELEVISION MONEY…SEE THE FOLLOWING http://www.landgrantholyland.com/2013/3/18/4121672/delany-big-ten-may-look-at-d3-model-if-obannon-plaintiffs-win http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/8895337/judge-rules-ncaa-athletes-legally-pursue-television-money

Ad Men have a long tradition of winning the day...take a look at a Big Win. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tu-TO4WH2uo

Looks like the major movie houses cut some huge deals in the spring...the local non affliated movie houses do not bombard you with all the ads. I gather AMC and Regal think people will keep coming to see first run movies and they can profit from the ad revenue's.

And Hollywood with the likes of the dashing Errol Flynn helped advance the myth.

Clayton is throwing a Hail Mary not a right hook. Can one app save a company...DISH TV stinks. DIRECTv beats it up in the number of channels it delivers and price. I don't mind fast forwarding past the commercials via my DVR. Might be too late for DISH...I see a merger with the killer app going to the winner.

Funny how it has come full circle...I've played golf with many Japanese and Korean players...a young American born Korean (the Japanese won't play with Korean's because they consider them inferior) told me that while the Japanese feel superior to his race...both the Japanese and Korean's see white Americans as lazy, weak, inferior human beings....they really hate us but are very happy to exploit us for our money.

Truth be told Vick admits he was more into studying Dogfighting vs. his Playbook while with the Falcons.. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/eye-on-football/19601446/eagles-qb-michael-vick-says-he-was-more-dedicated-to-dogfighting-than-playbook

Sounds like a great product...too bad it's riding on a bad ship. Dish sucks...I have DIRECTV and Dish just doesn't match up. I hope it won't be long till the other providers come up with a similar tool.

Seems like for some kids in Michigan their James Cherry was named Mitt Romney...nice timing.

Maureen Dowd is correct on JoePa...throw the bum out...don't let him retire. See "Personal Foul At Penn State." http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/09/opinion/dowd-personal-foul-at-penn.html?_r=1&smid=fb-nytimes&WT.mc_id=OP-SM-E-FB-SM-LIN-PFP-110911-NYT-NA&WT.mc_ev=click

Joe had to know in 1999...why did his successor suddenly retire at age 55 for no reason. Joe was trying to sweep it under the rug by moving him out in 1999. He probably hoped like some of the Catholic Bishops that what was really going on...wouldn't see the light of day. I would be interested to hear JoePa explain why his successor "retired" at age 55...young by JoePa standards.

I guess Redemption is not a word in the Peppercom dictionary.

Michael Milken is prostate cancer's answer to Susan Komen...In 1993 Milken founded the Prostate Cancer Foundation for prostate cancer research. Milken himself was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer. His cancer is currently in remission. The Prostate Cancer Foundation works closely with MLB through its Home Run Challenge program and it’s Foul Balls program to promote awareness of prostate cancer and raise money for medical research. Each season in the weeks leading up to Father’s Day, Milken visits many ballparks and appears on TV and radio broadcasts during the games. In 2003, Milken launched a Washington, D.C.-based think tank called FasterCures, which seeks greater efficiency in researching all serious diseases. A key initiative of FasterCures is Biobank Central, which is advancing life sciences research in areas as diverse as autism, psoriasis and breast cancer. Way to go Mr. Drexel Burnham...sometimes someone who has gone south of the law comes back and does a lot of good.

What would the pride of Evansville, Indiana Don "Donnie Baseball" Mattingly say. Donnie Baseball still keeps a home there...maybe he can be the leader of some change. His alma mater Reitz HS should bring him in right after the Dodgers fire him to talk to talk some healthy sense.

I guess being on edge on those mountain adventures has caused you to lose you sense of humor. It was funny...look what happened to Hideki when he lost his sense of humor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzeuvZc1KI8

Interesting quote from the former Continental CEO..maybe they need to get Gordon back..."Speaking of tough times and basics, Gordon Bethune, the former CEO of Continental Airlines who took an airline that was rated 10th out of 10 for customer service in the mid-1990s and made it No. 1, observed recently that for all the changes he oversaw and the policies and practices put in place, really, it all came down to one thing. "The difference between winners and losers," said Bethune, "is people who care."

If I had a need for that kind of product I would consider it...My understanding of marketing was to have your product in the mind of the potential buyer...so that when a need presented itself, your product would be considered. They scored on that front with me.

I guess you didn't like the Exorcist...I loved the commercial. I was interested to see what was going to happen....and it had a nice conclusion. Maybe it will appeal to movie moron's like me.

Too Big to Fail was the Readers Digest version of what happened...not bad but Inside Job gets into the real details.

Finally saw The Company Men...speaking about pushing 60 and looking like hell...Kevin Costner..wow. Nice taste of how the greedy bastards on Wall Street have destroyed the middle class. A better look at the financial collapse of 2008 is the documentary "Inside Job" a must see for what's wrong with Wall St and their co-conspirator's.

Credit Union's have beat other Banking organization's in ratings for customer service for over 40 consecutive years...and I think it is because Credit Union CEO's pay attention to what happen's on the front lines. I have done Teller for a Day for a few decades ...sometimes as many as six times in a year. The biggest benefit to working the front lines is that the employee sees the CEO's commitment to member service and they are more willing to commit and share information about what's not working and how to make things better.

Gaetano LePoer is an alias that is a salute to my family history. Gaetano is the Italian version of Thomas...my mothers brother Gaetano died at age 7. LePoer was my dad's family name when they migrated from Normandy to Waterford Ireland. Once in Ireland they became Power. And when my grandfather crossed to American via Ellis Island the S was added.

Pidge enjoyed his moniker, and it stayed with him forever...You didn't like the ZIP nickname and suddenly it disappeared.

It is interesting how events can give rise to nicknames…circa 1963-1964 the US Post Office unveiled a new five digit means for sorting mail. And in the bucolic suburb of Ridgefield Park a particular friend known as Ze Rabbit decided that another friend had a last name that worked well with the new Post Office program…and suddenly that certain individual had the nickname “ZIP”…but “ZIP” didn’t like his new moniker and an image and reputation campaign emerged to put an end to that foul nickname…and as quick as it had appeared…that nasty nickname “ZIP” vanished forever…or has it.

Looks like SNL supported your feelings about the Reelz Channel... http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/the-roosevelts/1319159/