On June 27, the trial in O'Bannon v. NCAA concluded
following 15 days of testimony. Plaintiffs in this case, former
college athletes, including former UCLA basketball player Ed
O'Bannon, originally filed in the Northern District of
California in 2009. They have challenged the NCAA's
longstanding ban on paying licensing fees to college athletes for
the use of their names and images in commercial outlets like
broadcasts, merchandise, and video games, asserting that this
policy constitutes an anti-competitive restraint of trade devoid of
any pro-competitive benefits.
Trial in O'Bannon concluded with many significant
issues left up in the air. Judge Claudia Wilken expressed
uncertainty, for example, as to the relevant market in this case.
The plaintiffs have defined the relevant markets as the
"higher education services market," in which colleges and
universities compete to recruit the best student-athletes, and the
"collegiate licensing market," in which parties
