Media Law Blog

Video games and gaming have been a huge industry almost from the very start. Since 2000 the industry has only seemed to grow exponentially. With updated graphics, new hardware, new software, and many more innovations the potential for video gaming can only go up. One particular area that has seen a massive rise has been in streaming. To someone like my parents, the concept doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Effectively people will watch streamers play video games and even donate real money to them. Top streamers like Tyler Blevins, better known as Ninja, reportedly make 6 figures a month from subscriptions, sponsorship, and donations. Not every streamer will have this success but it's certainly more achievable to the average person than something like the NFL may be. I never understood the huge craze behind streaming. I would see highlights on social media and pondered why people would pay to watch something they can find for free. Then I sat back and thought about ESPN+, the s...

Imagine a world where the phenom that became Kobe Bryant was already a household name even before the NBA Draft. Well, Kobe isn't the player but we are living that world here and now. The introduction of sites like HoopMixtape, Ballislife, and other basketball highlight sites have kids as young as 12 making a name for themselves on social media and the internet. In the 80s and 90s, you started to see some broadcasts of high school basketball like the McDonald's All-American Game, which gives a glimpse of who the future stars could be but there still wasn't a lot of publicity around players unless they were a top college player. Nowadays players like Zion Williamson already had thousands of followers and social media views from his high-flying dunks and blocks that he did in high school as a sophomore. The culture around basketball and basketball recruiting has changed drastically in the modern era. No longer are players first mentioned in national sports coverage as "t...