Sports Broadcasting and Virtual Advertising: Defining the Limits of Copyright Law and the Law of Unfair Competition
I. INTRODUCTION
Constant technological development has introduced another player in sports broadcasting: virtual advertising, a form of digital technology that allows advertisers to insert computer-generated brand names, logos or animated images into previously recorded television programs or movies. In sporting events, the advertisements can even be inserted live as the game is played, as seen in Superbowl XXXIV on January 31, 2000. This technology has been used since 1995, but has not experienced a major breakthrough yet. Several Major League Baseball (“MLB”) teams have made use of virtual advertisements along the wall behind home plate.’ Beginning this 2000 season, the technology will be used in a minimum of twenty Sunday Night baseball games. Some teams in the National Basketball Association (“NBA”) display virtual advertisements on their billboards on the sideline, while many collegiate conferences have already made use of virtual advertising in their regular season and tournament broadcasts.