Sports fans could see more and cheaper games, as court and FCC take aim at unpopular blackout rules

Republican Federal Communications Commissioner Ajit Pai has renewed a push to kill a 1975 rule that allows the leagues to black out games on cable if a local team fails to sell enough tickets.

The proposal, first announced in December, appears to be gaining momentum before a vote in the fall, according to a National Journal report. If the FCC plan passes, which appears likely, it will be a victory for fans but a relatively minor one. The reason is that the FCC rule, for practical purposes, has only affected football fans in a handful of cities where small-market NFL teams -- including Buffalo, Cincinnati and San Diego -- fail to sell out their games.

An even bigger victory for fans comes by way of a court decision in which a federal judge in New York refused to halt class action claims by fans who say blackout rules imposed by the NHL and Major League Baseball violate antitrust laws.

Taken together, the rulings are important because they suggest that authorities are growing skeptical of rules that give powerful sports leagues a free pass on ordinary anti-trust rules. More importantly, for fans, the end of blackouts could mean not just more games, but lower prices -- the judge reportedly cited an expert who claims game packages could cost 50 percent less if there were true competition in the sports market.