Has Major League Baseball Hit a Foul in Its Recent Skirmish with Online Fantasy Leagues?

Major League Baseball’s decision to square off with CBC Distribution and Marketing an online baseball fantasy-league operator based in St. Louis Mo. might make good legal sense but it’s bad for business according to Wharton faculty and baseball industry spectators. For several years CBC paid a fee to the Major League Baseball Players Union for the right to use players’ names and stats for its virtual leagues in which fans draft pro players onto imaginary teams and then compete with each other based on their players’ statistics. But last year Major League Baseball Advanced Media bought the Internet and wireless rights to the names and stats from the union and informed CBC that it wouldn’t renew its license. CBC has filed a law suit in response but the league isn’t backing down. By picking a fight with CBC -- and the $1.5 billion fantasy league industry -- baseball risks alienating fans damaging its brand and sacrificing future revenues for a small gain experts say.

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