over use of image in firm's fantasy football promosDECEMBER 7--Along with a sweeping management reorganization and shrinking stock price, Yahoo! also has to contend with a lawsuit filed against it by the gridiron's golden boy, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who claims that the online giant improperly used his image to promote its fantasy football game. In a federal complaint (a copy of which you'll find below), Brady, 29, charges Yahoo! used his photo without authorization in a September 2006 Sports Illustrated ad and in banner ads on Yahoo! Sports pages. In the lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court by a Brady management company, the three-time Super Bowl champion notes that fantasy football is a $4 billion industry and that the Yahoo! fantasy site is the Internet's largest, with 4.4 million users last year. Brady alleges that Yahoo!'s use of his image connotes a false endorsement and, as such, is seeking unspecified punitive and compensatory damages against the company. The complaint notes that while the football All-Pro is a "worldwide celebrity" who has become "famous for his prowess as an NFL quarterback, his fame is not limited to the world of sports. In 2005, Tom Brady hosted "Saturday Night Live."
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