Upper Deck Settles Lawsuit with Major League Baseball
Sports card leader can continue selling recently released baseball products as part of the mutually agreed-upon settlement
Carlsbad, CA,
Wednesday March 03, 2010
Today, the Upper Deck Company and Major League Baseball are pleased to announce that both parties have mutually agreed to settle the lawsuit brought by Major League Baseball against Upper Deck. Per the terms of the settlement agreement, Upper Deck has agreed not to use MLB trademarks including team names and/or logos on its trading cards going forward. As such, many of Upper Deck�s scheduled baseball product launches already in the pipeline for 2010 will not be released. However, Upper Deck can continue to sell three recently released baseball products currently on store shelves: 2009 Signature Stars, 2009 Ultimate Collection and 2010 Upper Deck Series One.
�Upper Deck is pleased with the settlement including the amount the company paid as it relates to the trading cards released in 2010,� said Jason Masherah, Upper Deck�s director of Sports Brands. �As a company, we are changing the direction of Upper Deck�s baseball products going forward. We are looking forward to creating fresh and innovative set content that will continue to get collectors excited.�
Since its inception in 1989, Upper Deck has been the market leader for both its ability to create top-quality, super-premium products and for developing innovative programs that promoted baseball cards to kids.
"Great cards of great players have always been the cornerstone of Upper Deck products,� added Upper Deck Founder and CEO Richard McWilliam. �We�ll just have to see how innovative and creative we can become now.
�Hopefully, this settlement paves the way for stronger relationships with our other licensors.�
About Upper Deck
Upper Deck is the leading sports and entertainment trading card and collectibles company. For more information on Upper Deck and its products please visit www.upperdeck.com.