The NFL, TikTok, and Fanatics are facing a lawsuit that accuses them of colluding to push independent sports memorabilia sellers off TikTok’s livestream marketplace and redirect customers toward Fanatics.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by David Allan Skalsky and QCBRIPNSHIP LLC, which operated the livestream memorabilia business Quad City Breaks. Skalsky alleges that TikTok, parent company ByteDance, Fanatics, and several NFL entities conspired to remove or suppress independent memorabilia sellers on the platform.
These sellers, also known as “breakers,” will livestream the opening of sealed boxes containing sports cards or memorabilia before distributing the contents to customers who purchased them.
“The object of the conspiracy was to exclude independent memorabilia sellers (‘breakers’) from TikTok unless they agreed to sell Fanatics’ merchandise exclusively,” Skalsky wrote.
The lawsuit claims that, after independent memorabilia sellers built successful businesses on TikTok during the pandemic, Fanatics sought to dominate the market by leveraging its licensing relationships with the NFL. That led TikTok to remove or demote sellers who refused to enter exclusive agreements.
Skalsky claims he was making as much as $200,000 a month selling memorabilia on TikTok livestreams until repeated account bans beginning in 2024 ruined his company. He claims that TikTok representatives told him the NFL flagged his account and indicated it could be restored if he signed an exclusive agreement with Fanatics.
“Defendants’ conduct harmed not only plaintiff but the competitive process itself by eliminating independent sellers from the livestream memorabilia marketplace, reducing consumer choice, suppressing output of competing products, increasing barriers to entry, restricting alternative channels of distribution and concentrating market power in Fanatics-controlled entities,” Skalsky wrote.
Skalsky is seeking financial damages, the restoration of his TikTok account and its previous algorithmic standing, cancellation of the disputed exclusive arrangements, and an injunction preventing the alleged practices from continuing.
According to IP and corporate attorney Ariel Givner, the lawsuit highlights the fight over control of the lucrative sports collectibles market on social media.
Representatives for TikTok, the NFL and Fanatics did not respond to requests for comment regarding the lawsuit.
On Tuesday, IP attorney Ariel Givner identified a second lawsuit similar to this one that had been previously filed against the same defendants.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.