• by David Goetzl , February 13, 2012

The National Association of Broadcasters came out in favor of rules that allow blackouts of NFL and other leagues’ games. In an FCC filing, the NAB suggested that a policy change might affect their exclusive access to certain broadcasts and could lead to cable and satellite operators importing broadcasts of games from other markets that would hurt their business.

“As Congress and the FCC have consistently recognized, market exclusivity agreements facilitate our system of local broadcasting and allow broadcasters to better serve their local viewers,” the NAB wrote in its filing.

Meanwhile, a group of five Democratic senators called for blackout rules to go in a filing, saying they are “a relic of a different time” and “in today’s environment of multibillion dollar NFL TV contracts, the sports blackout rule appears to be merely punitive” to fans. The senators also cited disputes between programmers and distributors resulting in blackouts as examples of fans being “unwilling victims.”

Furthermore, the NAB wrote that eliminating blackout rules “would likely accelerate the migration of sporting events from free to pay TV.” If importing out-of-market signals leads to sports leagues losing control of program distribution, the leagues may seek refuge on pay TV, where they could more easily maintain control over programming, the NAB suggests.

The FCC has asked for public comment on a proposal that would eliminate a rule requiring cable and satellite operators to honor blackout rules impacting local stations. Consumer groups, including the Sports Fans Coalition, have asked the FCC to consider the rule change.

An elimination would mostly impact the NFL, which mandates that a game be blacked out in a local market if general admission tickets are not sold out 72 hours before kickoff. Sixteen games were blacked out last season.

In its filing, the NAB said if a change in blackout rules needs to be made it should be the “province of Congress,” not the FCC.

The five senators, including New Jersey’s Frank Lautenberg and Michigan’s Debbie Stabenow, cited the current dispute that has kept MSG network off Time Warner Cable and a recent dispute that could have left DirecTV customers in Boston without the Super Bowl.

In their filing, the wrote that it is “unfair and unconscionable” that they should lose access to games “because their service provider and a network cannot come to an agreement.”