We have been documenting how sports leagues and major championships have become more controlling of how their content/games are covered online by media outlets and general public (see related links below). Now some more moronic behavior coming out from Pan American Games starting in Brazil in July, and the Rugby World Cup, which starts in Paris in September. In the former case, athletes, physicians, coaches or massage therapists cannot blog about the games while in session, either in text or audio/video form
In Ruby’s case, in return for Rugby Cup press credentials, the rugby board is limiting the number of game photos that can be published in online news sites during competition. It is also demanding that headlines not be superimposed over photographs, a rule designed to protect corporate sponsors like Heineken and Toshiba (obscuring the sponsors’ banners in background). The board chose to limit the online photos to five for each half of the game - in part because it wanted to protect the exclusivity of its own subscription-based “match tracker,” which features game commentary online along with a running assortment of still photographs.
And then, this statement from International Rugby Board: “We’re not being draconian…It’s just in some instances we need to protect ourselves if people step over the mark.” Right.
Related:
—FIFA Lifts Restrictions On World Cup Digital Images
—Cricket Australia Goes Rights Crazy; Online Fair Use Negotiations Stalled
—Ashes Online Blackout In Australia; Only BBC Deal