Since its inception in early the twentieth century, people have enjoyed playing the game of basketball. Indeed, in the United States, professional and college basketball has gained quite a following nationwide. Now, with the immense popularity of the NBA and its superstars, many students are looking to get noticed in college basketball recruiting, to play in college teams and even perhaps in the NBA.
The term "March Madness" has been in used to describe high school and college basketball for years. However, it was only during the 1990s did either the IHSA (Illinois High School Athlete, a school publication where the term first appeared in print) or the NCAA think about trademarking the term. By that time a small television production company known as Intersport, Inc., had claimed the trademark for itself. Eventually IHSA bought the trademark rights. Next, it sued GTE Vantage, Inc., an NCAA licensee that took the name March Madness for a computer game it had developed based on the college tournament. In the historic outcome of the suit, the judge ruled for a "dual-use trademark," thereby granting both the IHSA and NCAA trademark rights for their own separate purposes.
After this ruling, the NCAA and IHSA united to set up the March Madness Athletic Association, with the objective of coordinating the licensing and keep track of possible trademark infringement. A particular example involved a company that used the Internet domain name marchmadness.com for posting information regarding the NCAA tournament. After a long process, the judge ruled in favor of IHSA and the NCAA, saying that the phrase "March Madness" was not a common term, and the company was ordered to relinquish the domain name.
High school students who are talented in the game have a chance at furthering their education by playing college basketball. In exchange for playing in college teams, they get an academic scholarship and other financial help during their stay in that particular school. They apply for such during college basketball recruiting, where coaches test them to see if they are eligible to play in the school teams they represent.
The Internet has proven to be a useful venue for both students interested in college basketball, as well as coaches involved in the process of college basketball recruiting. There are many websites and online forums wherein students and scouts can come together and interact. D1Athletes is an online community wherein high school athletes and coaches alike can share and exchange information they need during college basketball recruiting. D1Athletes offers them a place to build an online presence and gain important public exposure.
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To learn more, visit D1Athletes.com or click College Basketball Recruiting