Pac-12 proposes allowing athletes to use names, likenesses

The Pac-12 announced on Friday it will submit a proposal at the 2016 NCAA Convention to allow athletes to profit off their names, images and likenesses.

The Pac-12 announced on Friday it will submit a proposal at the 2016 NCAA Convention to allow athletes to profit off their names, images and likenesses. 

The proposal is currently an initial concept and is intended to allow athletes to “promote their own non-athletic ventures.”

The announcement comes in the wake of the Ed O’Bannon lawsuit, which, pending appeal, would pay football and men’s basketball players up to $5,000 per year for the use of their names, images and likenesses for athletic purposes.

In total, the Pac-12 will submit five rule-change proposals. Among them is a proposal that would establish a contiguous eight-hour period between 9 p.m.-6 a.m., where athletic activities cannot be required.

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The Pac-12 says that finalized proposals will be released on Nov. 15.

The 2016 NCAA Convention will be held from Jan. 13–16 in San Antonio, Texas.

- Alex Nieves