One of the most intriguing things to come out of last week’s FSTA conference in Las Vegas wasn’t necessarily part of the agenda.

Actually, I suppose it technically was, as the first instance came when IPSOS’ Aaron Amic presented some data from a Fantasy Sports Association-backed international study his company had done.

“It” is the prospect of more collaboration between the FSA and the Fantasy Sports Trade Association.

Although some companies have joined both and plenty of industry folks attend the conferences of each, the FSA and FSTA have operated basically independent of each other. It would be good to see that change, and Vegas provided some evidence that it just might.

In addition to Amic’s research, FSA chairman Rick Wolf took the FSTA podium at one point to formally announce the upcoming Interactive Sports Conference that the FSA will be sponsoring in Las Vegas and offer $50 discounts on registration to FSTA members.

“The FSA understands the value that FSTA brings to the fantasy industry,” Wolf told FSB.com. “Our focus on advertisers, sponsors, brands, their agencies and outside industries is complimentary so it makes perfect sense to work together to maximize revenues and growth in fantasy sports.”

Attempting to fully describe the value that each organization would bring to such a partnership would require speculation well beyond my actual scope of knowledge regarding the associations.

On the surface, though, the FSTA membership and leadership carries a wealth of experience in the fantasy sports industry. It comprises a large number of companies of various sizes, styles and ages. The FSA also brings plenty of industry knowledge — led by co-founder and president Greg Ambrosius — and adds a list of big-name members with ties to major sponsors and advertisers, which one can glean from the agendas of the annual Sports Media Conferences.

“I’ve been trying to work on more collaboration for a long time. Rick Wolf, has too,” FSTA president Paul Charchian told FSB.com. “The FSTA continues to welcome opportunities to work with the FSA.”

Here’s hoping that the work can produce the outcome that both leaders desire, which would benefit all of us who are trying to make a living in this industry.

We’ve already made our feelings known about the decision by a Texas branch of Fidelity Investments dumping four employees after incorrectly interpreting fantasy football as gambling, and World Fantasy Games CEO Jeffrey Thomas pointed out that the firm should prepare for litigation. Other industry veterans are also criticizing Fidelity’s decision.

Fantasy Sports Trade Association president Paul Charchian called it “troubling” that Fidelity mislabeled fantasy as gambling.

“Congress recognized the distinction between fantasy sports and criminal sports gambling, and wrote exclusionary language around fantasy sports play,” Charchian said, referring to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. No fantasy sports company has been the subject prosecution for gambling. No person has been the subject of prosecution for gambling related to fantasy sports participation.”

So, maybe Fidelity will choose to take the stance that although fantasy sports don’t legally qualify as gambling, they could be perceived as such by potential customers and that such a perception could hurt the company. Well, CDM Sports founder Charlie Wiegert sees potential for this action to produce the opposite result.

“With over 25 million people playing fantasy sports games in our country, and probably many of them Fidelity customers or potential customers, this is a tough stance for them to take,” Wigert wrote Monday in his Godfather of Fantasy Sports blog. “They run the risk of many of their customers closing their accounts and moving them to other companies, as many fantasy football players would not like to do business with a company that feels they are gamblers or misinterprets the laws of our government.

“Interesting because some might believe it’s more like gambling when their customers are investing funds with them! I for one will be canceling any account I have with fidelity on Monday!”

Whatever the outcome, Fidelity’s firings have no doubt made a much bigger issue out of employees’ fantasy participation than there ever would have been otherwise.

Full FSTA reaction — http://www.fsta.org/blog/fsta-in-the-news/fantasy-sports-industry-responds-to-fidelity-firings

Charlie Wiegert’s blog post — http://www.godfatheroffantasysports.com/?p=22

A roundup of recent posts on the FSB News page.

– There’s swimming in the mainstream, and then there’s cracking the NPR news lineup. A quick piece in the technology portion of NPR’s All Things Considered on Monday afternoon discussed the increase in female fantasy football players — including sound bytes from FSTA president Paul Charchian.

– Our own Jeff Thomas, CEO of World Fantasy Games, will join representatives from two other Wisconsin-based game companies on Sept. 22 for a panel discussion on the health of the industry in their state.

Send all of your news, job postings, stories and profile ideas to FantasySportsBusiness@gmail.com. Follow us on Twitter (FSBcom).

As we reported last week, Best Buy will present a weekly fantasy football game this season, a contest which is being built and run by Paul Charchian’s Charch Media.

Best Buy’s Michael Tubman told FSB.com that the company wants to use the fantasy game to “interact with our customers” as well as showcase some products.

“This time around we are positioning this game as an engagement tool, a unique and fun way to reach our consumers,” Tubman said in comparing this effort with Best Buy’s 2004 foray into fantasy football. He said that previous edition didn’t last because the company wasn’t seeing “did not see the return on investment we had hoped to see.”

Tubman said discussion about this effort began about a year ago and heated up in late spring or early summer. Just like before, the game will feature weekly contests in which participants fill a roster to compete against celebrity competitors that will be revealed throughout the season. Fantasy players will receive one entry in the weekly prize drawing for every point by which they beat the celebrity.

In addition, a grand prize package will be awarded at the end of the year to the architect of the season’s best single-week score.

Tubman said the celebrities will be representing more than just themselves.

“The celebrities are tied to various charitable causes that Best Buy supports, and they will be helping to raise awareness for these causes,” he said.

Prizes will be provided by Western Digital, Toshiba, Panasonic, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, Activision, DirecTV and Logitech, and Titlecraft will present a trophy to each weekly winner. The game will also feature content from Footballguys.com.

Beyond this contest itself, the Best Buy game represents a continued trend among bigger brands of using fantasy sports to engage consumers — a trend that only seems likely to keep building momentum.