OT-ish: No more NFL Blackouts
Sorry if this was already posted in the flood of Brandon/Hoke stuff, but...FCC ruled today that the blackout "rule" is no more.
http://www.politico.com/story/2014/09/nfl-blackout-rule-fcc-111441.html
October 1st, 2014 at 3:22 PM ^
Might want to unload that Direct TV stock right about now. The NFL ticket price and subscriber base is about to go way, way down.
October 1st, 2014 at 3:50 PM ^
I have the Sunday Ticket and any game that is on my local station is NOT available on the Sunday Ticket channels. If a game is blacked out locally, it is NOT available on my Sunday Ticket channels. I'm not sure how this would benefit or harm the DirecTV package.
October 1st, 2014 at 4:43 PM ^
It is for out of market games, if the game is on in your local market, they black it out on the pay service. This happens to me every time I want to watch the Tigers play the White Sox, MLB at Bat blacks it out and forces me to watch the local Sox broadcast with good ole' homer Hawk becuase I live in the Sox/Cubs home market.
October 1st, 2014 at 3:27 PM ^
There is a catch, I would say...
"Eliminating the rule won’t immediately end all blackouts. They could still occur locally under existing contracts between the NFL and broadcasters, or as a result of negotiating disputes between broadcasters and pay-TV operators"
I think a couple networks have such agreements in place, don't they?
October 1st, 2014 at 3:29 PM ^
their non-profit status.
October 1st, 2014 at 3:54 PM ^
You know...I didn't realize the NFL is a non-profit organization until a colleague told me earlier this week, to which I said, "Yeah...right." Then I looked online and was shocked to see the truth. How the FUCK did the NFL get away with becoming a non-profit organization?
October 1st, 2014 at 4:11 PM ^
Because the franchises and their owners aren't.
October 1st, 2014 at 6:16 PM ^
I believe the NFL gets away with being a 'trade association' or something
October 2nd, 2014 at 8:27 AM ^
perhaps you should have looked a little bit further, and looked up what a nonprofit organization is.
October 1st, 2014 at 3:31 PM ^
It doesn't mean no more NFL blackouts. It just means the FCC is going to stop requiring them to. They're still allowed to.
October 1st, 2014 at 3:42 PM ^
are good until 2022 so blackouts aren't even on the table until then. And even then the NFL can still have them
October 1st, 2014 at 3:52 PM ^
Good. Why should fans be punished if they prefer to watch a game on TV?
October 1st, 2014 at 4:52 PM ^
Despite the NFL itself being non-profit, the teams aren't. The teams own the content of their games, why should they be expected to sell it in a form you want?
It may make good business sense to make games available both in-person and through broadcast, but that should be the team's right to decide.
The blackout rule has made a difference in ticket sales for mid-market and lower-popularity teams. If that's the best way for teams to maximize their revenue, why shouldn't they be allowed to do it?
October 1st, 2014 at 5:01 PM ^
Every agency thinks they have the right to do what they believe is best. Guess what, if the blackouts are bad for consumers, that's one of those things, a shame. If teams want to lift the blakouts because it's bad for business they will do that on their own. No one has a "right" to watch their local team.
October 1st, 2014 at 3:53 PM ^
All it does is end the government sanctioning of the blackout rule. The NFL is still free to implement it. I doubt they will choose to end it, but who knows?
October 1st, 2014 at 4:47 PM ^
Hopefully this extends to MLB, NHL and NBA because the blackout restrictions are stupid. I'd in particular look at paying for Gamecenter live and MLB.tv if I could actually pay for the team I want to watch. The blackout rule has never been a problem with me trying to watch the Lions.
October 1st, 2014 at 4:50 PM ^
Especially with the internet and streaming sites. I watch 75% of my sports this way...
October 1st, 2014 at 6:38 PM ^
Just live far away from your favorite teams and you never have to worry about blackouts. The trade off is you can't attend many games in person.
October 1st, 2014 at 8:18 PM ^
the Lions played in the Silverdome.