The FCC shouldn’t revise its sports blackout rule,...
The FCC shouldn’t revise its sports blackout rule, said the National Football League in an ex parte filing Friday. Blackouts are “rare, isolated, but necessary” to make sure local fans can enjoy “premier sports,” said the filing (http://bit.ly/1chLUQT). “The FCC’s…
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sports blackout rule, coupled with the network non-duplication and syndicated exclusivity rules, provide a necessary counterbalance to the compulsory copyright rule,” said the NFL, calling it “unfair and unwise to get rid of these safeguards.” The league doesn’t have the option to resolve local blackout issues through negotiation because the NFL doesn’t have contracts with individual local broadcasters and cable systems, the ex parte said. The NFL has recently changed its ticket policy “to provide its member clubs additional options in engaging their fans and communities,” but these changes don’t provide a basis for revision of the FCC’s sports blackout rule, said the filing.