The Enquirer

The FCC voted Tuesday to eliminate the long-standing rule which states sports can black out sporting events on local TV if they do not sell enough tickets. The rule was implemented in 1975.

The only problem for NFL fans thinking they suddenly won't have to worry about blackout rules is that couldn't be further from the truth. Expect nothing to change. All that changes is who is inevitably responsible for keeping those games off local television.

The NFL still has every right to black out games locally and can negotiate as such with broadcast partners. They plan to keep everything intact as currently constructed.

This was released in a statement from the league:

"NFL teams have made significant efforts in recent years to minimize blackouts. The NFL is the only sports league that televises every one of its games on free, over-the-air television. The FCC's decision will not change that commitment for the foreseeable future."

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, has been a part of the charge to see the rule abolished and released the following statement following the FCC's decision.

"Today's decision is a win for sports fans," Brown said. "Since the 1970s, the federal government has supported the National Football League through policies put in place to drive fans into stadiums. While this policy may have once made sense, the NFL now generates nearly $9.5 billion in revenue. The FCC is right to eliminate this taxpayer funded backstop and I urge the NFL to pursue a similar fan-focused policy by lifting remaining league enforced blackout policies."

Indeed, the onus now falls on the NFL and they've made their intentions clear. While not quite back where this started, essentially nothing will change except who is responsible the next time a home game is blacked out.

The next step could be federal legislation that would do away with the broadcast antitrust exemption if the NFL continues to black out games.



Last year, only two NFL games were blacked out in their local markets. The Bengals have not had a blackout since Nov. 25, 2012, against Oakland. The team did lower the threshold necessary to avoid local blackout by opting into an NFL option dipping it to 85 percent. The team hit that in each of the first two home games this season, though attendance still lags below what it has been the previous two seasons.