Stats Inc. and Motorola, manufacturers and distributors of
the Sports Trax pagers, are "appealing an injunction against the
dissemination" of NBA scores issued by Judge Loretta Preska,
according to Lawrie Mifflin of the N.Y. TIMES. Although some
news organizations, including the N.Y. Times and Associated
Press, have joined AOL in filing "friend-of-the-court" briefs
supporting the defendants, NBC has filed a "amicus brief for the
plaintiffs," the NBA and NBA Properties, "contending that a line
must be drawn to prevent new media" like online services from
taking away from the value of a live game or TV broadcast. Robin
Bierstedt, VP/Deputy General Counsel of Time Inc.: "I was
troubled that a major news organization like NBC would take a
position that in my judgement is contrary to the First Amendment.
A basketball game is news, not a performance." Richard Cotton,
Exec VP/General Counsel at NBC, said the real time information
provided by Stats Inc. "could not be construed as news reporting
deserving of First Amendment protection," and hopes the case
helps "strike a new balance between commercial rights and news
reporting rights" as "technology's only going to get better"
(N.Y. TIMES, 10/21).
