Can Hall of Fame Football Player Jim Brown Score a Touchdown Against EA for Scrambling His Image?
Ryan S. Hilbert Retired professional football legend Jim Brown is no stranger to on-the-field battles with opponents. His latest battle, however, is with videogame powerhouse Electronic Arts. On March 6, 2009, Brown sued EA in federal court in the Central District of California. Among other things, Brown alleges that EA violated his right of publicity by using his digital image in a number of EA’s popular Madden videogames. This practice, known as “scrambling” because of the way EA uses certain criteria — including a player’s height, weight, position and year(s) in the league — to make the game appear more authentic but removes the player’s name in order to make him less recognizable, has come under intense scrutiny from other former football players as well. On May 5, 2009, former Arizona State University and University of Nebraska quarterback Sam Keller sued EA (and two other defendants) in federal court in the Northern District of California for “scrambling” his image in EA’s NCAA f
