Our Take

The FCC’s sports blackout rules, which prevent pay TV operators from airing games that are blacked out on local TV stations due to not being sold out, are “obsolete” and “have to go,” said FCC chairman Tom Wheeler in a USA Today op/ed on Tuesday. Here’s his objection to what he terms an “anti-fan practice.” (Go here for the op/ed.)

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler: “In 1975, the commission enacted rules barring cable from airing a game that has been blacked out on the local television station because it was not sold out – strengthening the NFL’s blackout policy. Today, the rules make no sense at all. That’s why today, I am sending to my fellow commissioners a proposal to get rid of the FCC’s blackout rule once and for all.

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Friday–January 16

FCC Getting New Round of Broadcast Ownership Input

Reply comments are due today at the FCC on its quadrennial review of broadcast ownership rules. That means it’ll probably be Monday before the FCC posts them all, and while many comments are likely to restate entrenched positions, a few new threads may still emerge.

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