Shane O'Donnell has issue with his image being used to promote GAAGO
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Clare hurler Shane O’Donnell believes the GAA has to address the issue of image rights after a photograph of him was used to promote GAAGO, a service he called "not a particularly popular initiative".
The two-time All-Ireland winner, the favourite to be named Hurler of the Year on Friday, said he did not want payment for the use of his image as he does not agree with the existence of the pay-per-view platform. O'Donnell insisted that the GAA should be "swallowing the cost of promoting the game and paying to televise these games" and added that "I don't think that's something out of their budget".
The ownership of image rights is a topic in funding and protocol negotiations between the GAA and Gaelic Players Association (GPA) which began last week.
O’Donnell is a member of the GPA’s national executive committee and expressed his frustration about his association with GAAGO to the players' body. He was told that the GPA has heard similar frustrations about image rights expressed by other players.
"The bottom line is I don't agree with it," O’Donnell told the BBC’s The GAA Social podcast about GAAGO.
"Then I see on the GAAGO's website all year that they're selling the season pass with myself and three other players, just like right above the part where it says 'buy for X amount of euro'. To anyone, you could think that we're endorsing that or we have given our explicit consent that we would be put up there.
"And that's just not the case. We weren't even asked. I don't even want to benefit financially from that. I don't want to be endorsing GAAGO because I don't agree with it. So really, I just want them to ask me, can we put your image up there? (I'd say) no.
"It's not a huge deal, but you feel like you should have some control over your image. You want to be able to say, 'Yes, I'm happy to do that' or 'No, I'm not happy to do that.'"
The Éire Óg Ennis man admitted that he “feels uncomfortable" with the situation and that "it feels like in some ways you’re being exploited as some kind of asset rather than being thought about as a player…” He added it is his understanding that as amateur players, "basically we don't own our image".
O’Donnell feels the GAA could do a lot more to promote games and says there is no incentive for players to engage with the media other than “they feel obliged or feeling like they should do it”.
"I think the players need to be brought along with it," he said.
"The players ultimately are the ones going to be doing it, but there needs to be a reason for them to do it. And I think the GAA ultimately are responsible for growing the game.
"That's their North Star, probably, growing the hurling and football to a bigger audience. And I think they need to see that as a core tenet, bringing players into the media and having more contact between them and having more build up and hype between games. That should be something that they're striving for. And I feel like they're missing a trick there."