San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Fined $10k for Defying No Beats Headphones Rule

[WilliamLondon]

Since when did the pink ribbon get replaced as the symbol for breast cancer awareness? Me thinks it's nothing to do with that, but merely it provides a convenient way for him to protest in a way that invites no criticism for his defiance??

 

[vanzantapple]

Poor guy. How will he ever pay this fine?

Kickstarter

 

[Judas1]

More than one person has asked you to specify which rights you're talking about yet you continue to speak in generalities. So I will ask directly... again. What rights do you see being violated? Please don't say freedom of speech because that ain't it.

Just saying "rights" doesn't make it all encompassing. This is MR, not the Yahoo comment section. Just kidding But seriously, what rights?

Freedom of speech and freedom of expression. Take a look at the player wearing the pink headphone. He is expressing his support for breast cancer victims, and maybe also expressing his love of Beats Audio. Why do you think the NFL should be able to suppress that because of the CBA?

 

[handsome pete]

Freedom of speech and freedom of expression. Take a look at the player wearing the pink headphone. He is expressing his support for breast cancer victims, and maybe also expressing his love of Beats Audio. Why do you think the NFL should be able to suppress that because of the CBA?

What the hell are you talking about? You have a seriously flawed view of the constitution and what your perceived rights are.

 

[OldSchoolMacGuy]

Nike is the official clothing and shoe provider by the NFL.

However, players can (and do) have shoe contracts with rival companies, and wear those products during games.

This is what makes this so...perplexing. Tom Brady of the Patriots wears Under Armor shoes, and isn't threatened or fined for doing so.

But if someone wears a different brand of headphones, then there is a fine to be paid.

Are you sure there isn't some type of fee or something paid to the NFL by the company the player has the contract with? There has to be some reason they allow them to get away with it. If it were that simple they'd just wear whatever was the most comfy.

 

[69Mustang]

Freedom of speech and freedom of expression. Take a look at the player wearing the pink headphone. He is expressing his support for breast cancer victims, and maybe also expressing his love of Beats Audio. Why do you think the NFL should be able to suppress that because of the CBA?

I give up. You win. You have found a way to conflate contract violations with the Constitution of the US of A. No one could fight that argument. Maybe Matlock, but certainly no ordinary human.

I've got Luck and T.Y. Hilton on my fantasy team. Gotta go see what's up with that. Good night sir. It's been real.

 

[vi2867]

Please NFL, with the money he makes, it's like a $10 fine.

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Another thing I forgot to mention. It is like working for Coca Cola and showing up to work with a Pepsi Shirt on. If you job says no, it no...

 

[Tzerlag]

I've never seen a batch of more clueless responses than I'm seeing here. It's called advertising, marketing, promotion, sponsorship, brand awareness. All companies big and small engage in those activities. It's what drives our economy. Nothing works until something gets sold.

Bose has a deal with the NFL to promote it's products. If you have individual employees actively displaying competing products you've got a problem.

And that problem is with the employees. In this case Kapernick. He's effectively giving his bosses the middle finger by doing this. And they're punishing him. Its the way the world works. Get used to it. Oh, and the Easter Bunny isn't real.

Careful. You'll piss off the freedom and justice crowd....

 

[RolyPolyBird]

Does NFL take 100% of the money? If so this could end in everybody winning except Bose.

 

[Judas1]

What the hell are you talking about? You have a seriously flawed view of the constitution and what your perceived rights are.

Okay, so a player can't represent his views no matter what because he's under a contract? Whe do you have rights then?

I give up. You win. You have found a way to conflate contract violations with Constitution of the US of A. No one could fight that argument. Maybe Matlock, but certainly no ordinary human.

I've got Luck and T.Y. Hilton on my fantasy team. Gotta go see what's up with that. Good night sir. It's been real.

He may be violating his contract, but the NFL is violating his rights. The NFL can enforce their contract, the player has no real recourse unless he takes it to court. Why can't you understand rights versus obligation, and that one supersedes the other?

 

[Tzerlag]

The NFL Players Association should do something about this. This getting way too ridiculous.

Also herd Steve Ballmer, the LA Clippers new owner, has banned all Clippers employees to use anything Apple related.

And McDonald's workers can't wear burger king hats to work.
WHAT HAPPENED TO FREE SPEECH???

 

[RolyPolyBird]

Okay, so a player can't represent his views no matter what because he's under a contract? Whe do you have rights then?

He may be violating his contract, but the NFL is violating his rights. The NFL can enforce their contract, the player has no real recourse unless he takes it to court. Why can't you understand rights versus obligation, and that one supersedes the other?

Oh come on. He could have raised awareness through other means than wearing a competitors headphones - pink bandana?. Its already ridiculous to begin with, without bringing civil rights into the equation.

 

[Judas1]

And McDonald's workers can't wear burger king hats to work.
WHAT HAPPENED TO FREE SPEECH???

Should Mcdonalds be able to restrict their employee from expressing that they like Burger King? We're not talking about players on the field, during game time, while they're working.

 

[Tzerlag]

The clueless one is you. Nobody begrudges the NFL if they restrict the players when it has something to do with football. They fine players for drinking before a game. Fine. Because drinking effects your game. Etc. But telling a player what they can wear in front of the camera is ridiculous. The deal between the NFL and Bose has nothing to do with the players. If Bose wants the players to wear their gear, Bose should pay the players, like Beats is paying the players. Thats the way business works. Get used to it.

No one is requiring players to wear Bose anytime or anywhere. The players can't wear hats or shirts with advertising on them for non-sponsors either.

It's an advertising issue. Infotime is correct.

 

[Judas1]

Oh come on. He could have raised awareness through other means than wearing a competitors headphones - pink bandana?. Its already ridiculous to begin with, without bringing civil rights into the equation.

Explain to me why it effects the game of football what a player uses as his headphone, then I will stop bringing up his civil rights.

 

[wovel]

Interesting that Apple attached their name to this brand now that it is getting dragged through the dirt.

Apple just sold Bose in the store they didn't really attach their name to it. Unless you think Beats is being drug through the mud. If you think that, I am not sure how to resolve your confusion.

 

[Tzerlag]

Should Mcdonalds be able to restrict their employee from expressing that they like Burger King? We're not talking about players on the field, during game time, while they're working.

Having the non-sponsor item in view is product placement advertising.
The players can't come out in Adidas hats, etc.
Wes welker was fined a few years ago for wearing his side company's hat to the post game interview.
These aren't new rules aimed at beats.

If the McDonald's employee is telling customers at the register thet BK is better, he'd probably get fired. But if he's not at work I can't see it being a problem.

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Explain to me why it effects the game of football what a player uses as his headphone, then I will stop bringing up his civil rights.

It could not be farther from a civil rights issue. Civil rights are between citizens and government.

Football is a business. A business the makes a ton of money from advertising. It has everything to do with the business.

 

[RolyPolyBird]

Explain to me why it effects the game of football what a player uses as his headphone, then I will stop bringing up his civil rights.

It doesn't, as I said its ridiculous, but your points are even more so.

At the end of the day this isn't going to help Bose convince the youth that their overpriced headphones are for anybody but hapless executives on intercontinental flights which is the reputation they have and deserve.

They have turned any player who gets fined for these "offences" into a rebel who will take up column inches with photos attached.

 

[Judas1]

Having the non-sponsor item in view is product placement advertising.
The players can't come out in Adidas hats, etc.
Wes welker was fined a few years ago for wearing his side company's hat to the post game interview.
These aren't new rules aimed at beats.

If the McDonald's employee is telling customers at the register thet BK is better, he'd probably get fired. But if he's not at work I can't see it being a problem.

That is the issue. The NFL is claiming that players are at work for them while they are interviewing. Why does the NFL get that license? It seem quite clear that that time is the players personal time even if he is representing ht NFL. Therefore, its closer to to a Mcdonald's employee saying his oppinion during break or lunch time. Sure Mcdonalds may hate it, but should they get a say?

 

[AppleScruff1]

I hope this whole thing blows up in the NFL's face. I would never buy beats, but to tell people what headphones they can wear is ridiculous.

It goes further than headphones.

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I am surprised they can even do something like this. Seems to be a massive violation of personal freedom.

It's called a contract.

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This is stupid. Now I am not a fan of Beats headphones, neither was I a fan of Bose headphones (although I do have a pair of noise canceling from when Bose was the only one avaialble.) However, now I will never ever buy another Bose product, period. Why? Because this is just a silly restriction of freedom. Just because the NFL has a sponsorship agreement should not mean that NFL players are lorded and mastered over as if they are slaves being told what they can and cannot wear off the field. If they are not in a team uniform, then tough, they should be able to wear what they want.

There are certain times when they are restricted on what they can wear, and it's minimal.

 

[iososx]

Less than he quite likely spends for a single evening in the strip club. Inconsequential.

 

[AppleScruff1]

Why even allow something like this? I think he should be able to use what he wants to use. I won't comment on the poor quality of Beats headphones, but if he likes them, why not allow him to use them?

If you want to advertise Bose, a few signs, and ads during games are enough. Don't force the individual HUMAN BEINGS into doing something or using something etc that they don't want to.

They have signed contracts with the NFL. They abide by them or face the consequences.

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Apple should pay fine, it's good advertising for Apple...

Or Apple should have paid more than Bose so they'd be the official sponsor.

 

[handsome pete]

It seem quite clear that that time is the players personal time even if he is representing ht NFL.

That's where you're wrong again. Those are league mandated interviews. They are part of the job.


And stop trying to tie citizen's constitutional rights into this. You either fell asleep during high school civics, or you haven't gotten that far in school yet.

 

[AppleScruff1]

Here's what Apple should do. Pick the top 5 players on every team who wear Beats. Tell them to wear the hell out of them in every camera shot, and they will cover the fines.

32 teams * 5 players * $10,000 = $1.6M per week, $25.6M per NFL regular season. Or, they could cover only the nationally-televised games each week and cut the cost down. That is chump change to Apple and they will get a ton of publicity out of it.

Why not just pay for the sponsorship to begin with?

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My sentiments exactly. I would never buy Beats or Bose, but this rule is BS.

Like the story about them supposedly telling the athletes at the Olympics that they couldn't use their iPhones in public. It just infuriates me.

Except that this is in a legally binding contract between the players and the NFL.

 

[69Mustang]

That is the issue. The NFL is claiming that players are at work for them while they are interviewing. Why does the NFL get that license? It seem quite clear that that time is the players personal time even if he is representing ht NFL. Therefore, its closer to to a Mcdonald's employee saying his oppinion during break or lunch time. Sure Mcdonalds may hate it, but should they get a say?

I'm back. T.Y. Hilton is going off tonight. 28 points so far. Where was I? Let's try this.

You are my boss. During our contract negotiations we come to this issue.

You say, "Mustang, do you agree that company time is defined by any time you are representing the company to the public.? This includes interviews on camera, training camp, company functions, and before and after the game."

I say, "Sure Judas, that's acceptable."

You say, "Mustang, do you agree that while representing the company, you will not display logos of companies that compete with our sponsors. Once you are on your personal time as defined by the contract you can wear what you like."

I say, "That's cool, as long as I can get some hookers and blow."

You say,"Noooooooooo Mustang. That is not acceptable."

I say, "Fine, just hooker's then?"

We do our back forth and we come to a final agreement. You sign, I sign.

Where are my rights violated? I used a little humor there but the point remains. No ones rights have been violated. I said it as a joke before but you really need to brush up on your civics. No not Hondas, but the study of the rights and duties of citizenship.