The issue in sports for this analysis is trademark law and trademark licensing as they apply to sports teams and any products or services associated with them.
Trademark law is designed ôto protect consumers from confusion and to protect the investment and goodwill of trademark owners in their marks,ö (Stabbe, 2005, p. 68). From the Pittsburgh Steelers to the New York Yankees, team logos, names, and other aspects associated with sports franchises are official trademarks. The expansion of merchandising and product expansion using sports team trademarks was responsible for the law of trademark licensing. According to Lans (1995, p. 6), ôThe law of trademark licensing states that "only controlled trademark licensing is valid under law.ö
There are a number of different applications for both trademark law and trademark licensing law that apply to professional sports teams. With respect to trademark law, the ôThe 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recognized that, as a general rule, trademark law should be construed to apply to works only where the public interest in avoiding consumer confusion outweighs the public interest in free expression,ö (Stabbe, 2005, 68). The First Amendment protects freedom of speech. However, when it comes to sports team logos or trademarks, teams often play heavy handed with the media and journalists who use their trademarks or logos freely.
Journalists and others in the media freely use team logos and trademarks on a routine basis. However, professional sports teams take the position that this use is not free speech because it can cause confusion for teams and their trademarks. As Stabbe (2005, p. 68) notes, ôWhether or not their position is sustainable, when dealing with news organizations, sports organizations have one additional weapon in their arsenal. They can threaten to invoke the nuclear option of revoking press credentials to cover their events.ö As such, journa
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