Topps confirms NBA license switch 10-1-2025

[cms11]

Originally Posted by boxbuster7

Heard from people that panini is releasing a few products after the 10/1 deadline

can anybody confirm this and I'm wondering how this is legal?

They will keep producing products, but the question is whether they will have NBA logos.

[glassofwater]

Originally Posted by oshmeehan

I wanna say since they are products that Panini announced prior to the October 1 date, that it is OK for them to be released after that date. I think the October 1 date is the date in which Panini can't announce any future NBA licensed products to be produced.

When UFC and wwe handed off this past year they had zero releases after the license reverted to Topps.

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by Stackfan

Kinda odd Topps doesn’t have anything on the calendar.

Topps/Fanatics no longer believes in traditional marketing....they know that breakers will buy up anything they release and any price point.

You probably won't see preview images, checklists, or release dates until AFTER a product is live.....

[fabiani12333]

Originally Posted by cms11

I would think it would take more than an announcement because they could announce hundreds of products and then release them over years.

Yeah, they have to get approval from the NBA and players association for any product release.

[fabiani12333]

If the NBA and NBPA licenses were to get opened up to all the manufacturers, it would be a complete game-changer for the hobby. Can you imagine Upper Deck, with their ownership of the Fleer brands, being able to produce classic brands again like Precious Metal Gems and Exquisite? And you could get fully-licensed Michael Jordan cards again.

Wow, just wow.

Competition and choice are good for the consumer. The 90s-to-mid-2000s, with all the different manufacturers and trading card brands, were the best era for basketball card hobbyists. Make the basketball card hobby great again.

[Torro]

Originally Posted by fabiani12333

If the NBA and NBPA licenses were to get opened up to all the manufacturers, it would be a complete game-changer for the hobby. Can you imagine Upper Deck, with their ownership of the Fleer brands, being able to produce classic brands again like Precious Metal Gems and Exquisite? And you could get fully-licensed Michael Jordan cards again.

Wow, just wow.

Competition and choice are good for the consumer. The 90s-to-mid-2000s, with all the different manufacturers and trading card brands, were the best era for basketball card hobbyists. Make the basketball card hobby great again.

I fully agree with you and been hoping for something like this to happen. But the most likely option for this to happen is Fanatics buying upper deck. Not sure why NBA only wants to go with exclusive license. Give the license to upper deck and also Panini, then we will see some real competition between companies in terms of the quality and pricing, that would definitely be the best for collectors. Maybe one day in the future..

[threepointplay]

Originally Posted by Torro

I fully agree with you and been hoping for something like this to happen. But the most likely option for this to happen is Fanatics buying upper deck. Not sure why NBA only wants to go with exclusive license. Give the license to upper deck and also Panini, then we will see some real competition between companies in terms of the quality and pricing, that would definitely be the best for collectors. Maybe one day in the future..

The NBA had multiple licencees and collectors moaned incessantly about too many products, over-production, too many of this, not enough of that and all while basketball card sales/revenue steadily declined.

I am not for a moment saying a single licensee is the right answer; but for those who have been in this space for a few decades, multiple licensees is not the nirvana a lot of collectors think it is.

[Torro]

Originally Posted by threepointplay

The NBA had multiple licencees and collectors moaned incessantly about too many products, over-production, too many of this, not enough of that and all while basketball card sales/revenue steadily declined.

I am not for a moment saying a single licensee is the right answer; but for those who have been in this space for a few decades, multiple licensees is not the nirvana a lot of collectors think it is.

I started collecting in the early 00s, I remember how many different products there were in our local hobby shop, I mainly went for upper deck products as there was a chance of pulling Kobe or MJ auto (or game used jersey cards which were also huge back then). The hobby was on decline and companies like Fleer struggling etc. We had 15 years of exclusive license period, the hobby is more global and mature now, might work out differently this time.

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by threepointplay

I am not for a moment saying a single licensee is the right answer; but for those who have been in this space for a few decades, multiple licensees is not the nirvana a lot of collectors think it is.

More choices will always be better than fewer choices.

Multiple licensees would be great for actual collectors....it would be lousy for anybody trying to make money off the hobby. Big difference......

[YouTheManNick]

Originally Posted by threepointplay

The NBA had multiple licencees and collectors moaned incessantly about too many products, over-production, too many of this, not enough of that and all while basketball card sales/revenue steadily declined.

I am not for a moment saying a single licensee is the right answer; but for those who have been in this space for a few decades, multiple licensees is not the nirvana a lot of collectors think it is.

Totally. In my mind the ideal situation is Fanatopps, Panini and Upper Deck all have the licenses to each sport and there's a limit to the amount of products they can produce for each sport each year as well as specific requirements.

Say, each company is allowed 10 products per year.

2-3 have to be "low end" and affordable.

3-4 have to be "mid end"

1-2 "high end"

Then maybe allot 1-3 products as "wild card" where they can do whatever they want.

We get the competition and the choice without too much glut and oversaturation.

[Inferno]

Leagues don’t want multiple licensees. It makes way too much work for them. Every design and photo choice for every card has to go through league approvals. It’s far easier to just deal with one company and they also get the benefit of charging a fortune for exclusive rights.

And companies don’t want to be limited to a few products because they pay through the nose for these licenses and need as much product as possible to recoup those fees and still make profits. I remember Brian Gray talking on podcasts before about the economics of licensed products in major sports only making sense at high volumes.

[beavers]

Originally Posted by Inferno

Leagues don’t want multiple licensees. It makes way too much work for them. Every design and photo choice for every card has to go through league approvals. It’s far easier to just deal with one company and they also get the benefit of charging a fortune for exclusive rights.

And companies don’t want to be limited to a few products because they pay through the nose for these licenses and need as much product as possible to recoup those fees and still make profits. I remember Brian Gray talking on podcasts before about the economics of licensed products in major sports only making sense at high volumes.

Of course they want a monopoly. The question is whether they have engaged in anti-competitive practices to achieve it.

“The U.S. Sherman Act aims to prevent anticompetitive practices that harm consumers by leading to higher prices, fewer choices, and suppressed innovation. While a company can legally achieve a dominant market position through superior products or efficiency, it becomes illegal when that power is maintained or established through exclusionary actions like predatory pricing or exclusive contracts, which harm competition and benefit the monopoly at the expense of others.”

[YouTheManNick]

Originally Posted by Inferno

Leagues don’t want multiple licensees. It makes way too much work for them. Every design and photo choice for every card has to go through league approvals. It’s far easier to just deal with one company and they also get the benefit of charging a fortune for exclusive rights.

And companies don’t want to be limited to a few products because they pay through the nose for these licenses and need as much product as possible to recoup those fees and still make profits. I remember Brian Gray talking on podcasts before about the economics of licensed products in major sports only making sense at high volumes.

Yes. We know. This is all just wishful thinking. "Wouldn't it be nice?" talk.

Can't fight city hall. Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown. If you cannot be turned to the dark side then you will be destroyed. I'm sorry, but some fellas are lucky and some ain't.

But we can still dream. Not even Mikey the Rube can buy our dreams, slap a Fanatics label on them and sell them at a 1,000x mark up... yet.

[Asian62150]

Originally Posted by YouTheManNick

Totally. In my mind the ideal situation is Fanatopps, Panini and Upper Deck all have the licenses to each sport and there's a limit to the amount of products they can produce for each sport each year as well as specific requirements.

Say, each company is allowed 10 products per year.

2-3 have to be "low end" and affordable.

3-4 have to be "mid end"

1-2 "high end"

Then maybe allot 1-3 products as "wild card" where they can do whatever they want.

We get the competition and the choice without too much glut and oversaturation.

Add some competition by giving the wild card products out based on which company has the best selling or most popular product.

[casebreaksllc]

25-26 Flagship is releasing October 25th

[blackvodka]

Originally Posted by casebreaksllc

25-26 Flagship is releasing October 25th

Thanks for the update. I've been trying to keep an eye out for this for the past week or so.

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[bjho852]

I could at least dream, but definitely am glad if the NBA license opens up again, for whatever reason and however small the chance is, even though I will likely stick with legends products, similar to UD Century Legends released years ago, along with maybe some retro-themed products.

And I also like to see Autographics-like, cross-product mega autograph sets being released, if possible. Again, I could at least dream.

[msw1984]

Originally Posted by casebreaksllc

25-26 Flagship is releasing October 25th

On a....Saturday?!

[volblorx8634]

Originally Posted by bjho852

I could at least dream, but definitely am glad if the NBA license opens up again, for whatever reason and however small the chance is, even though I will likely stick with legends products, similar to UD Century Legends released years ago, along with maybe some retro-themed products.

And I also like to see Autographics-like, cross-product mega autograph sets being released, if possible. Again, I could at least dream.

Panini has been doing this for a few years. Sets like the hall of fame one in 2020 , calligraphy this year, and I think midnight signatures in 2020


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[imbluestreak23]

Do not conflate the popularity of sports cards today as a result of leagues moving to a single license.

The world economy is completely different today than it was in 2003, or 2006, or 2009, or even 2014.

Today every possible widget, physical or digital is being monetized to it's fullest. This was not the case 2 decades ago.

I am a strong advocate of returning to a multilicense system (not my call, or anyone's call other than league PAs). The current system is complete a$$ cheeks

[jkampis]

Originally Posted by msw1984

On a....Saturday?!

It’s actually going to be on Thursday, Oct. 23.

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by beavers

Of course they want a monopoly. The question is whether they have engaged in anti-competitive practices to achieve it.

“The U.S. Sherman Act aims to prevent anticompetitive practices that harm consumers by leading to higher prices, fewer choices, and suppressed innovation. While a company can legally achieve a dominant market position through superior products or efficiency, it becomes illegal when that power is maintained or established through exclusionary actions like predatory pricing or exclusive contracts, which harm competition and benefit the monopoly at the expense of others.”

So who do you sue.....the leagues? the players associations?

[beavers]

Originally Posted by mfw13

So who do you sue.....the leagues? the players associations?

It’s already well underway.

https://dicellolevitt.com/dicello-le...card-monopoly/


https://www.vitallaw.com/news/antitr...google.com%2F#.

[brothertona]

I need a Series 1 NBA release in October


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[Bob Ross]

I'm excited to see how Fanatics plans to make this first Topps release a miserable experience for the public.

Can't wait!