SAN FRANCISCO (CN) - A federal judge has preliminarily approved a $60 million settlement with the NCAA over the use of student-athletes' likenesses in video games.
The settlement, which U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken approved Wednesday, will apply to all NCAA Division I football and men's basketball players belonging to teams that appeared in an NCAA branded video game from May 4, 2003, through Sept. 3, 2014, and whose image or jersey number appears in the game.
Attorneys for the players estimate that more than 100,000 college players have potential claims.
Lead plaintiff Sam Keller, a former quarterback for Nebraska and Arizona State, sued the NCAA and Electronic Arts in 2009, claiming the video game company and the governing body for college athletics conspired to make money off of student-athletes' identities. EA has stopped making NCAA video games since the lawsuit's filing.
The class reached a $40 million settlement with EA in June, marking the first time student athletes would get paid for their likenesses in video games. Wilken preliminarily approved that settlement as well on Wednesday.
Wilken scheduled a fairness hearing for final court approval of both agreements for May 15, 2015.
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