Sports fans frustrated by the growing number of streaming platforms needed to follow live games are sounding off. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said Sunday on "Fox & Friends Weekend" that officials are reviewing thousands of comments on whether a significant share of sports should remain free on broadcast television.
Carr said the FCC is looking into whether sports leagues should continue to benefit from a special antitrust exemption, and that public comments solicited on the matter largely support keeping games more accessible.
"We actually got thousands and thousands of comments. It was a big number for the FCC... The vast majority so far, based on an initial assessment, support keeping a significant portion of these sports games on free, over-the-air broadcast TV," Carr said.
"So, we'll be looking at it. There could be actions at other portions of the government, and Congress as well, if these sports leagues continue to push this issue."
FCC CHAIRMAN QUESTIONS NFL'S ANTITRUST PROTECTION AS LEAGUE SHIFTS TO STREAMING SERVICES
The FCC probe comes as a new Fox News poll indicates that 72% of sports fans think major sporting events should stay free on broadcast TV, amid reports that the NFL is considering allowing teams to sell the rights to preseason games to streaming services.
The special exemption in question was codified by the 1961 Sports Broadcasting Act, which allows the NFL to negotiate league-wide TV deals without violating U.S. antitrust rules, provided it meets certain conditions, including protecting customer access. The stakes are high if the NFL's antitrust exception goes away, particularly if individual franchises begin selling their TV rights separately.
NFL'S PUSH FOR GROWTH IS INEXORABLE AT EXPENSE OF FANS AND AMID AN 'EXISTENTIAL THREAT'
Carr made his feelings clear, stating he thinks the experience of finding a game to watch has become frustrating and costly.
"You effectively have to have a computer science degree to decipher this," he said, adding that, historically, broadcast TV and sports leagues have had a mutually beneficial relationship that allowed leagues to grow while supporting local news.
"We're at a tipping point where these leagues can push it so far, putting games behind paywalls, that they undermine their ability to claim that antitrust exemption."
