Here is an interesting looking lawsuit involving restraints that Upper Deck imposes on Internet-only distributors:
Upper Deck filed a lawsuit on its new distribution policy against Blowout Cards and other (as of yet unnamed) Internet-only stores in June 2011. Without rehashing the entire article, Upper Deck’s distribution policy basically requires its authorized hobby distributors to sell its current, sealed products only to Brick and Mortar hobby shops for the first 90 days. This policy prevents Internet-only sellers from having new Upper Deck products until those products are three months old. In its lawsuit, Upper Deck asked the court to find that its distribution policy was legal, especially in regards to Blowout Cards.
There are other aspects of the case, including a tying allegation. Read here for further details on the distribution policy and the underlying lawsuit.
