Beckett Blog: CLC, UPPER DECK ANNOUNCE MULTI-YEAR EXCLUSIVE

[cgilmo]

Nice to see UD fighting back.


The Collegiate Licensing Company officially announced Thursday morning that it has reached an exclusive five-year agreement with Upper Deck.

The agreement, which goes into effect April 1, 2010, gives Upper Deck exclusive rights in the trading card category to the team and word marks for more than 200 collegiate institutions.

http://blogbeckett.wordpress.com/2009/0 ... exclusive/

 

[All In Cards]

bye bye EEE

 

[pujolsthomefan33]

HMMMMMM.........

I dont know that I am really that excited about this.....I have never been a big fan of cards of players in their college uniforms....that being said, with Basketball and Football I would think Press/Pass would not be too happy...


TK

 

[goldenegg1]

Bye Bye Sage!
Press Pass can probably survive for a few more years because of NASCAR.

 

[Jaypers]

Sweet.

 

[cgilmo]

The Collegiate Licensing Company Agrees to Exclusive
Trading Card License with The Upper Deck Company


ATLANTA, Georgia, (Aug. 13, 2009) – The Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), a division of IMG Worldwide, and The Upper Deck Company, a leading producer of sports trading cards, announced today a multi-year agreement on behalf of more than 200 collegiate institutions for Upper Deck to be the exclusive licensee in the collegiate trading card category.



Collegiate trading cards, which feature former student-athletes in their collegiate uniforms, have been interspersed into professional trading card sets or distributed as standalone sets since 1996. In the past, most of these cards have been known as “draft pick” or “professional prospect” cards. Upper Deck’s program will look to expand upon the current usage of collegiate marks and put a new focus on the athletes’ collegiate accomplishments, as well as feature mascots, stadiums, and traditions unique to the college market.



"We believe that there are many opportunities in the collegiate trading card category that have not been fully realized, and Upper Deck shares our vision for expansion," said David Kirkpatrick, CLC's Vice President of Non-Apparel Marketing. "We are confident that fans will embrace this strategy, which will place a renewed focus on collegiate accomplishments in addition to a student-athlete's post-collegiate potential."



Upper Deck intends to expand its collegiate license beyond football and basketball to include sports such as hockey, baseball, lacrosse, swimming, and women’s basketball. Additionally, its sales distribution will extend into new collegiate markets such as bookstores and concession stands.



“We were very impressed with Upper Deck’s commitment to underscore the athlete’s collegiate successes,” added Craig Westemeier, Licensing Director for The University of Texas. “This expansion of card offerings coupled with the enhanced retail distribution should have a positive impact on the exposure of our brand and the collegiate trading card business as a whole.”



“Many of the best athletes in the world were leaders in college sports, and fans of those colleges passionately support their former players,” said Richard P. McWilliam, Upper Deck’s founder and CEO. “Upper Deck shares that commitment to the college market, and we plan to put the marketing resources in place to support both our trading card program and the college sports market overall.” McWilliam continued, “This move strengthens Upper Deck’s already firm position as the industry leader in delivering the most sought-after rookie cards in the market.”



The new deal goes into effect April 1, 2010.

 

[brouthercard]

Oh wow. You think the "rookie card" market is confusing now.................

 

[WaxHeaven]

Not a big prospector but... aren't like 90% of the best prospects in the Minors and NOT college baseball?

Bryce Harper didn't even finish High School. :lol:

 

[George_Calfas]

When I saw this today I thought great move UD. Hopefully they can do well and make the prospectors very happy.

 

[pujolsthomefan33]

Not a big prospector but... aren't like 90% of the best prospects in the Minors and NOT college baseball?

Bryce Harper didn't even finish High School. :lol:

Think outside of BASEBALL though....every other major sport has the majority of their talent pool coming from College Athletics...


TK

 

[WaxHeaven]

Not a big prospector but... aren't like 90% of the best prospects in the Minors and NOT college baseball?

Bryce Harper didn't even finish High School. :lol:

Think outside of BASEBALL though....every other major sport has the majority of their talent pool coming from College Athletics...


TK

Oh yeah, this will be huge for basketball and football!

I just thought baseball cause this is the baseball forum.

 

[NECpilgrims8]

When I saw this today I thought great move UD. Hopefully they can do well and make the prospectors very happy.

I am picturing a return of SP Prospects, aka UD's version of EEE. This could be a VERY good thing for the prospecting market, if they do it right.

It's better to have this in the hands of UD, rather than Topps. They seem like the lesser of two evils in my eyes,

What does this mean for the USA baseball line? Also, does this mean they could potentially put out a cape league set, just like the USA issue? That would be SICK!

 

[Mighty Bombjack]

What does this mean for the USA baseball line?

I believe that USA Baseball, with a totally separate license, was never in danger of going anywhere.

 

[caseya10781]

I would love UD cards of my favorite colleges without the school names photoshopped out... this is very cool.

Casey

 

[Penno]

In regards to football, this gives UD a huge advantage, mainly because of the "early draft" products that picture players in their college uniforms. Those cards come out a few months before regular NFL uniform products, so it looks like UD will have a window to put out the only football, product, correct?

 

[cgilmo]

In regards to football, this gives UD a huge advantage, mainly because of the "early draft" products that picture players in their college uniforms. Those cards come out a few months before regular NFL uniform products, so it looks like UD will have a window to put out the only football, product, correct?

you are correct, but thats only the tip of the iceberg.

 

[pujolsthomefan33]

In regards to football, this gives UD a huge advantage, mainly because of the "early draft" products that picture players in their college uniforms. Those cards come out a few months before regular NFL uniform products, so it looks like UD will have a window to put out the only football, product, correct?

I would think so.....same as basketball as well...


TK

 

[NECpilgrims8]

In regards to football, this gives UD a huge advantage, mainly because of the "early draft" products that picture players in their college uniforms. Those cards come out a few months before regular NFL uniform products, so it looks like UD will have a window to put out the only football, product, correct?

Looks like we will see more of these....

and these....

 

[Benson]

It seems like it would be bigger for basketball and football, those generate dollars, baseball doesn't generate squat.

Think of the Collegiate Collections series that came out in the early 90s, but with much nicer cards and autos of the legends. A UNC set of current players with autos of Jordan, Worthy, Perkins, Dean Smith, Vince Carter, etc. Or a Notre Dame football set (Montana, Tim Brown, Ismail, Rudy, etc). I would think these would be great sellers.

Hell, if they came out with a set of autos of the greats of Illinois Fighting Illini basketball and football, I'd be in line to buy it. I would kill for a certified auto of Doug Alterberger, Bruce Douglas, Efrem Winters or Olaf Blab

 

[Rudzud]

This is truely a scary time we live in as collectors. I'm not entirely sure what to think of this.

What could possibly be next...