Blinded by the Dark

By Arlen Blakeman

A city of 1.3 million, Jacksonville, Florida is well suited to support an NFL team. However, the terrible economic situation in this city has had a devastating toll on ticket sales of their only major professional sports team, The Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville is one of the most industrial towns in the South. The backbone of its economy is the automotive parts industry. For the first eight years of its existence, the team was very successful.  They made it to the AFC Championship game in only their second year of existence and made the playoffs four times in their first eight years.  Not only was the team doing well, but also the economy was flourishing.  This led to ticket sales that were through the roof.  However, with GM going down and Toyota’s stock failing, thousands are out of work in this city. These struggling families obviously need to spend their 100 dollars on more important things than a ticket to see the Jaguars live. However, this is the only option they have to see their favorite team play on Sundays. The Jaguars, because of low ticket sales, did not televise seven out of eight of the their home games last season.

The NFL’s “Blackout Policy” has been enforced since 1973.  The policy states that if a home game of a team is not sold out within 72 hours of kickoff, the game will not be shown on local television.  The Jacksonville Jaguars organization, to help this problem, have closed off sections for advertising and even given fair package deals to fans wanting to see the team.  The team is not to blame for this problem.  It is the NFL’s ridiculous blackout policy that has cut ties between the team and its city.  Former governor of Florida, Jeb Bush, who brought the Jaguars to Jacksonville in 1995, stated that the city does rally around the team, but that in the current economy no one can afford to go.  So why should they be punished?

Watching sports used to be an activity any person, no matter race, wealth, or gender, could participate in.  But now the greediness of the NFL has put a limit to this freedom.  Plus, if you think about it, there are many who are too old to sit in the hot sun of Florida for three hours.  Also, there are people with disabilities who sometimes cannot make it to the game but still love to watch the sport and forget about the hardships of life for a few hours.  It’s not always about money Roger Goodell and I urge you to lift this ban and give America’s game back to the people of Jacksonville.

When Sports Fans Coalition formed and effectively launched, this bi-partisan group of concerned sports fans knew the tasks before it were daunting. Educating sports fans about the issues on the air and through written word, organizing sports fans to speak with one voice against businesses and politicians taking advantage of the group, and fighting for change in court rooms and government buildings; needless to say, this undertaking is tremendously challenging.

Given the background and experience of SFC’s Board of Directors and Advisory Board, taking action for change in the hallowed halls of the FCC and, more recently, the Oregon General Assembly, for example has not been the greatest of these challenges. Organizing sports fans to come together hasn’t been a piece of cake, but the ease with which sports fans can sign our petitions, become a member, a fan on Facebook, or follow SFC on Twitter has facilitated real growth and interaction with sports fans in such a short time.

The real challenge has been the first goal of the SFC’s trifecta: education. Education and, bluntly, persuasion, has been a real test of the organization’s fortitude. One only needs to read the last four paragraph’s of Brad Blakeman’s testimony before the Oregon State Legislature hearing last week to recognize that our representatives need to be convinced that touching sports isn’t taboo. 

The tremendous backlash following the U.S. Government’s decision to investigate the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball culminating in a he said-he said stand off between fallen rocket Roger Clemens and his former personal trainer Brian McNamee left a bad taste in constituents’ mouths. Tax payers across the country questioned the use of our representatives’ time and energy on an issue which would’ve been better handled by Judge Judy or the People’s Court.

As the hangover from such a scandal has subsided, the need for sports fans to organize and fight for their rights has not subsided. In fact, during this recession, or as many believe it to be a depression, which burdens our economy, the big businesses which control the sports we watch on TV and the teams we cheer for in the stands are more eager than ever to make a buck. Now, more than ever, it’s time for a Sports Fans Coalition.

Sports teams are pursuing deceptive ways to take money from fans without them knowing it. Media companies have their legal teams working overtime to force fans to pay their ever rising prices with diminishing returns, making false promises to consumers and their representatives.

While most fans just want to see their teams win championships, like Red Sox Nation’s broken curse which brought tears to so many eyes in 2004, many are getting a raw deal but just don’t know they can do something about it. Sports fans don’t recognize their power.

The truth is that we sports fans have a tremendous responsibility to speak up when our fan dollars are being misused. When large corporations, even if they are the teams we passionately cheer for at home or in the stadium, take advantage of us, there is recourse we should pursue. When media companies strike exclusive deals and break the law by prohibiting competition and keeping us from getting the best deal or even the opportunity to watch our games on TV, we won’t take it. We will fight back.

Join us in the fight to take the power back.  There is strength in numbers, and our representatives will be forced  to recognize that the business of sports should not be ignored. Sports fans deserve better.

On Tuesday, the four men responsible for the former ticket resale outlet, Wiseguys Ticketing, were indicted. For three years, these hackers purchased large amounts of premium seats at events, such as the 2006 Rose Bowl and the 2007 MLB playoffs. Wiseguys then sold their inventory to online ticket brokers at an increased price. The ticket brokers then sold the tickets on websites such as StubHub and TicketsNow.

By taking away the fans’ opportunity to purchase those seats directly from Ticketmaster or mlb.com, fans were instead forced to look to those ticket resale outlets to buy what they needed at a significant markup in addition to the increased price paid by those brokers.

So the fans got screwed — twice.

However, removing the Wiseguys from the online ticket purchasing game is only one hurdle facing sports fans in the technological age.

In a recent article in the Sports Business Journal, the president of StubHub, Inc. raised some issues of accelerating concern for sports fans in this new world of paperless ticketing. “People often talk about the virtues of paperless ticketing, and there are some, but there are also two main negatives: It takes away fan rights and eliminates resale competition,” Chris Tsakalakis said. “And with no competition, you usually get a lower level of service and higher prices.”

One of the advantages of paperless ticketing is the fan access to the tickets. Secondary ticket markets can not resell paperless tickets, eliminating ticket broker interest. But when plans change or a fan wants a last minute ticket, paperless tickets keep fans from re-selling tickets they can no longer use. Paperless requires a picture ID and the purchasing credit card to be shown at the gate to the event, prohibiting ticket transfer.

Penn State University went paperless for 2009 football season tickets in the student section. Ticketmaster made reselling possible through their own website, but the fine print showed that it only worked if both parties had valid Penn State student id numbers. There are also limits on how many games can be resold and at what price.

Paperless ticketing is a great way to eliminate scalpers. But at what cost to the fan?

I traveled last week to Salem, Oregon to testify before Members of the Oregon General Assembly with regard to Comcast Cable’s blacking out of Portland Trail Blazers home games. Thousands of Trail Blazers fans are denied enjoying their favorite past time because of the greed and control exercised by a cable provider who refuses to provide the feed for home games to competitors in areas they cannot and do not service.

SFC struck a nerve in Oregon and challenged lawmakers and fans to take on Comcast, the Trail Blazers, and  satellite providers to “do the right thing” by fans. There is no good reason why tens of thousands of sports fans are unable to enjoy Trail Blazers home games in the comfort of their homes, their favorite restaurant or bar.

Now it is up to the fans to get off the bench and take to the court and take on this issue, head on. There is no doubt that fans can make a difference and SFC is there to help.

Sign the petition directing Oregon State representatives to take on this issue.

Become a fan of the Local Chapter in Oregon, SFC-Portland, on Facebook.

Follow SFC-Portland on Twitter.

Testimony of Brad Blakeman

Sports Fans Coalition

before the

Oregon State House Committee on
Consumer Protection and Government Accountability

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Chairman Holvey, Vice-Chairman Gilliam, Vice-Chairman Riley, Members of the Consumer Protection and Government Accountability Committee: 

The question that brings me before you is a simple one:  should Oregon sports fans be able to watch on TV their home town team play home games in the comfort of their homes or at their favorite restaurant or bar?  When the taxpayers of Oregon help to make sports here a reality, the answer is clearly, yes they should!   

My name is Brad Blakeman and I am a member of the Sports Fans Coalition Board of Directors.  Like a lot of Oregonians, I am an avid sports fan.  I also have lived and breathed politics and public policy for decades, serving on the senior White House staff for President George W. Bush and, today, teaching political science at Georgetown University.  I also am a regular political contributor to Fox News, MSNBC, and other television networks.

Sports Fans Coalition is a non-profit advocacy group with a single mission:  to give the sports fan a seat at the table whenever public policy impacting sports is being made.  We have a bi-partisan board of directors.  In addition to myself, a Republican from the Bush White House, our Chairman, David Goodfriend, is a Democrat and former Clinton White House staffer.  Our board also includes a sports writer, a public interest advocate, and a former CEO.  Our members are sports fans from around the United States.  But we all have one thing in common:  we love sports and think that fans should be better represented before the government.

We are proud to announce that just this week, Sarah Moon of Portland became the Chair of Sports Fans Coalition’s new Portland, Oregon chapter.  Sarah is a die-hard Trail Blazers fan, season-ticket holder, and all-around Oregon sports fan.

Here in Oregon, Portland Trail Blazers fans have been shut out from watching their own games.  In 2007, the Trail Blazers apparently entered into a ten-year deal with Comcast, worth about $120 million, to carry Trail Blazers games on Comcast SportsNet.  At the time, fans in Oregon were told that they eventually would be able to view their home games regardless of who provided their TV. 

Oregon sports fans rightfully expected to be able to watch their Trail Blazers playing home games in Portland.  After all, the fans helped pay for the arena.  Press accounts state that the City of Portland contributed $34.5 million to help build the Rose Garden. 

Today, however, almost three years after the Comcast/Blazers deal, only Comcast cable subscribers and a few subscribers to small cable systems can watch every game the Blazers play at home.  This year, for example, of the over 80 home games, 60 will be available only to Comcast and a few other subscribers via Comcast Sports Net.

So, if you live in a neighborhood that is served by Charter cable, you cannot watch your Trail Blazers playing a home game.  If you live in a rural area where the only pay-TV providers are DISH Network or DIRECTV, you cannot watch your Trail Blazers playing a home game. 

Even the mother of Sarah Moon, our Oregon chapter chair, is impacted:  a huge Trail Blazers fan, she lives in a rural area south of Portland.  She does not have access to Comcast, which means she has zero access to Blazers games.  As you can imagine, this is extremely disappointing for her.

Oregon sports fans, you deserve better.

Now, it just so happens that Comcast wants something from you at the moment.

On January 28, 2010, Comcast, GE, and NBC-Universal filed papers in Washington, D.C. asking the government to approve Comcast acquiring NBC-Universal. 

The federal government is not the only one who can weigh in on this transaction, however.  The State of Oregon, through the office of the Attorney General, can weigh in on the proposed merger under Oregon anti-trust laws.  Oregon could even move to block the deal.

In other words, Oregon, Comcast right now is asking you for permission to acquire NBC-Universal.

Sports Fans Coalition would like to pose a simple question:  if Comcast is asking the Oregon state government and the federal government for permission to acquire NBC-Universal, why can’t Trail Blazers fans in Oregon ask to see their home games first?

Comcast might make a number of arguments against us even posing this question.  For example, they might say that theirs is a private contract negotiated between Comcast and the Trail Blazers. 

True, and no one wants to interfere with that contract, especially not a free-market conservative Republican like me.  But right now, Comcast is asking the people of Oregon for something it wants—approval of its merger.  Oregonians have every right to ask Comcast for something they want in return, especially when Comcast apparently promised it to them almost three years ago.

Comcast also has been known to bring up DIRECTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket as an example of a sports exclusive that somehow justifies Comcast’s behavior in Oregon and elsewhere.

Not so.  In Oregon, local fans are not able to watch, from the comfort of their own home, their home-town team playing home games.  Sunday Ticket is for out-of-market games.  It has nothing to do with watching your home town team playing home games.  Sports  Fans Coalition believes that local fans should be able to watch their local team play its home games, regardless of how a fan gets his or her TV.

Finally, let me just point out that there are people who think that sports issues are too frivolous for legislatures to take up.  Sports Fans Coalition disagrees.  The government already is heavily involved in sports.  As I mentioned, government funds were used to build the Rose Garden here in Oregon.  Federal statutes include sweeping exemptions for professional sports leagues.  Clearly, legislatures and governments historically have found sports to be fair game.

It is about time that fans get off the bench and take the field to fight for their rights to enjoy America’s favorite pastimes, whether in their homes or at their local stadiums.  When issues have an impact on fans, the fans should be heard.

Also, let’s face it.  The sports media economy is one of the largest of all private industry sectors.  It is larger than the U.S. automobile industry.  Sports represents tens of billions of dollars annually to the U.S. economy. 

Americans these days want to see their government, at the local, state, and federal levels, give them their money’s worth.  If taxpayer dollars and public laws go into sustaining the sports economy –which they do—then fans and citizens have every right to make their wishes known to their elected officials, and to expect results.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today.