There is one big difference between Scrabble^® and games such as chess, backgammon, poker, bridge and others with a national organization and tournament scene. Scrabble^® is a registered trademark owned by a corporation, currently Hasbro, Inc. That gives Hasbro a right and interest in protecting the game's profitability, among other things. This reality has had both positive and negative effects on the tournament scene and the ability of organizers to do what they want.

Hasbro has sponsored a number of major championships, greatly increasing the prize funds at those events and giving them enough stature to be noticed and covered by major media outlets, including television. On the other hand, corporate interests haven't always been helpful. Squelching creative literary and entrepreneurial efforts, for example, has hindered what tournament players have wanted to do at times.

Club and tournament membership is still too small to be a force that Hasbro must take seriously. With anywhere from 3,000 to 10,000 members, depending on how it's counted, the National Scrabble^® Association doesn't yet have enough clout to significantly influence a corporation that sells 2,000,000 or more games a year. While a case could be made for weighing the concerns of a zealous member organization much more heavily, and still be in the best interests of Hasbro, reality must be dealt with.

It isn't always clear what will draw the interest or ire of the parent corporation, so players tend to be rather timid about trying something new. Sponsorship outside of Hasbro or its affiliates should be possible, but to date has only been tested in small ways. Books, both nonfiction and fiction, have been written, but much more could probably be done. Anything that helps, or at least doesn't hurt, the marketing and selling of the game, should be acceptable. Still, caveat lector.