7 Players Suing WPT

Mr.McJ · #1 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 04:26 AM

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/st...071910071.html

Quote:

Seven poker players sue WPT over use of likeness, name
By RYAN NAKASHIMA
ASSOCIATED PRESS

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Seven professional poker players filed an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday against the operator of the World Poker Tour over the use of their likeness and their access to play in televised tournaments.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, came as the world's largest poker tournament, the World Series of Poker, was under way at the Rio casino-hotel in Las Vegas.

The players include famous pros Howard "The Professor" Lederer, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, and World Series champs Joseph Hachem and Greg Raymer, argued that WPT Enterprises Inc. made them waive lucrative rights to use their images and names to promote products and video games before they could enter WPT tournaments.

Lederer told The Associated Press that video clips of him playing in a WPT tournament were used in a WPT video game that competed directly with one he and his sister Annie Duke appear in, "World Championship Poker 2."

"All I'm asking is that they not compete against me, with me, without even offering to pay me or asking my permission," Lederer said. "People are being paid seven-figure endorsement contracts. These are rights that should not be demanded of us for nothing."

Jeffrey Kessler, lead lawyer for the players, said the suit accuses WPT Enterprises of "price fixing" and "group boycotts" by colluding with 12 member casinos to prevent players from entering tournaments unless they forfeit their rights. The casinos were not named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The suit seeks damages and to void contracts the players signed for entering previous WPT tournaments, he said.

Kessler said he has tried similar suits that have changed the way major sports businesses run, including the NBA and NFL.

"Imagine if they were to have to said to John Elway in the NFL, 'Well we should just be able to use your image for any product or service that we want,'" Kessler said. "No professional sport has been able to get away with that and the same will be true with respect to the World Poker Tour."

WPT Enterprises lawyer Adam Pliska said he couldn't comment before seeing the suit. But he added that most players were content to sign the agreements allowing use of their likeness for the chance to play.

"We've been able to expand the sport for everyone's benefit," Pliska said. "Aside from some occasional complaints, we've had great success and this has worked out for all parties involved."

Crave Entertainment Inc., the publisher of the game featuring Lederer and Duke, filed a suit in January in Orange County, Calif. against WPT Enterprises and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. alleging infringement of its right to use poker players' likenesses. The case is pending.

Other players involved in Wednesday's suit include Duke, Phil Gordon and Andy Bloch.

Poker pro Barry Greenstein, who is not part of either suit, said the action amounted to a dog biting the hand that fed it, although he sympathized with both sides.

"All of us as poker players were degenerates until the World Poker Tour started the whole ball rolling," the 51-year-old said, adding he had parlayed fame on the tour into a sponsorship deal with a major online poker site and is selling a poker advice book.

"I've been involved in DVDs and video games and all these types of things, even though I've gotten no money out of it," he said. "I know that I get a lot of perks from being a celebrity."

LuckyTxGuy · #2 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 11:07 AM

Wow. I think Barry summed it up well at the end. I can see both sides, but he has a good point about the perks. It's a tough call since I'm not in their spot.

jte87 · #3 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 01:25 PM

BG might have a point. But just because poker pros are lucky to have these new opportunities doesn't mean they should just be thankful for whatever they get and allow themselves to be taken advantage of.

the alex · #4 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 01:43 PM

Businesspeople have one objective- to make money for themselves and their clients. This is just a case of conflicting intrests and nobody's wrong. The players are in the early stages of forming a union. They're saying "Without us players, there is no tour for you to get these sponsorships that conflict with ours."

And the WPT is saying, 'Without our tour, you players have less chances to be entrepreneural at all, so do it on our terms."

Who suffers more without a WPT? The WPT.

I think a poker player's guild is coming very soon and this is just the beginning. It's definitely a case where the television producers need the poker pros more than vice versa because the pros have games all over for more money. Ivey and Greenstein have been known to sandbag tournaments when a cash game gets juicy on the outside.

Marm · #5 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 02:34 PM

Bloch has been on this high worse for a couple years now, thats why you don't see him in any WPT events any more. They get a little upset when you goes and edits their contract before he will sign it.

Steve-O · #6 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 05:43 PM

hmmm, lets see. They sign a contract a few years back, circumstances change, now they are pissed they signed it. So, they do what any red-blooded American would do, THEY SUE!

I absolutely love how contracts mean nothing in America.

these guys should be thankful for everything they have, remember when poker players had to play poker to make money??? Now the furthest thing from their mind is playing poker, they're a bunch of advertising whores. In my opinion this is what will kill the poker boom, a bunch of greedy players who slap their image or name on anything. They look like damn Nascars at the tables.

These guys went from making $100,000ish a year to millions and they're still not happy?!?!?!?!? And like I said they have no risk anymore, they are all staked in tourneys and make $50,000 selling a book, dvd, or doing commentary every 3 months. Besides the millions they make for wearing the most god awful clothes for poker sites.

Without a union they are wasting their time. The WPT can stipulate that appearing in their broadcast allows them to use your likeness if they wish. If the poker players don't like it, form a union. Then you can say, "no this is how it will be, and you start whats called, compromising!"

Mr.McJ · #7 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 05:59 PM

^^^^^^^^^
Really well said.

Marm · #8 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 06:02 PM

The problem arose when WPT was first starting off, they were the only game around. There were very few other Large buy-in events for these guys to play in, so They were basically forced to sign these lopsided contracts. I've read copies of them, and they are harsh. They leave no rights at all to the players. The issue is the WPT contracts really are pushing the line of extortion.

Steve-O · #9 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 06:07 PM

then don't play. like you said there are other games in town now

Steve-O · #10 (**permalink**) 07-20-2006, 06:11 PM

like I said, they were happy to sign them a few years back. Now they regret it. It's like TO, geez I really hate that contract that I SIGNED.

And I disagree that the WPT needs these players. Many pro's will play them because they aren't going to make jack shit outside of poker, Men, Hassan Habib, Huck Seed and others like that. The players tried the PPT crap, and it didn't work out to well.

The WPT will always be million dollar prize pools, regardless if Lederer or ferguson are playing in them. If you eliminate the top 50 pro's it wouldn't matter, actually the tourneys would be easier