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The FCC is considering a petition from fan interest groups to rescind the NFL television blackout rules. As they work through their administrative process we'll have updates along the way.
Although the NFL is a highly popular entity in America, complaints remain about the way they business. Two of the biggest complaints are the television blackout rule and personal seat licenses. The blackout rule was instituted when the NFL derived most of its money from ticket sales and the financial potential of television was not even on the radar. Since 1975, the NFL has had the power to order blackouts of a local game if the stadium did not sell out.
The rule is now under its most significant attack to date and may not be long for this world. The FCC has officially begun the process of considering a new rule that would rescind the television blackout rule. In November 2011, five public interest groups submitted to the FCC a petition for rulemaking that would eliminate the sports blackout rule (PDF). On Thursday, the FCC submitted a public notice calling for comments about the petition (PDF). These are the first two steps in a lengthy process.
The FCC will consider new rules either through statutory mandate, agency identification of a problem, or a public petition. In this case, five groups submitted a public petition. The groups include Sports Fans Coalition, Inc., Public Knowledge, National Consumers League, League of Fans and Media Access Project.
The FCC has reviewed the petition and is now providing an opportunity for interested parties to submit comments on the matter. The FCC will accept responses to the petition until February 13, 2012. Replies to those responses will be allowed until February 28, 2012. This potential change in rules will receive comments from across the sports world, and not just from the NFL. Although the rule-change is aimed at the NFL, this has the possibility of impacting all four major sports.
After February 28, the FCC will review the comments and evidence submitted for and against changing the rule. Although they could simply rescind the blackout rule, the FCC reserves the right to "evaluate a range of possible substantive alternatives for fixing the problem. For example, [the FCC] may consider whether there are less burdensome alternatives than prohibiting certain behaviors; [the FCC] may decide that requiring the disclosure of certain information by industry would achieve the agency's objectives."
NFL Blackout Policy: Richard Nixon Offered To Retain Regular Season TV Blackout
The NFL has had its current television blackout policy in place since Congress passed legislation in 1973 that required games be made available if the stadium was sold out at least 72 hours in advance. Prior to the legislation, the NFL blacked out all home football contests during the regular season and playoffs. Government complaints at the time eventually led to Congress implementing legislation that turned into the current NFL policy. That policy is currently under review by the FCC.
It turns out the NFL had an opportunity at the time to implement a more stringent blackout policy that would have had full White House support. Richard Nixon's White House tapes in the National Archives reveal the President offered then NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle a compromise. In exchange for freeing up playoff games from the blackout rules, Nixon would have allowed the entire regular season to remain blacked out by vetoing any congressional legislation to the contrary. From his audio tapes:
President Nixon offered this compromise in part because he wanted to watch the Redskins playoff games that season. The NFL was prepared to blackout the Redskins-Packers playoff game and Nixon made the offer to prevent the blackout. President Nixon sent the attorney general to speak with Rozelle and the commissioner rejected the offer.
According to then intern and current NFL executive Joe Browne, Rozelle felt the eventual Congressional legislation was going to be a better option that would allow the league to maintain its need for sellouts, while also placating the fans.
Since the 1973 legislation went into effect, blackouts have gone down from 50% in the 1970s to six percent last season. Some teams like the Cincinnati Bengals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers still have high numbers, which is one reason the Sports Fans Coalition has petitioned the FCC for review.
Feb 11 4:11p by David Fucillo - 2 comments