DOJ investigating NFL for anticompetitive harm of consumers, per report
The United States Department of Justice has opened an investigation into the NFL for possibly engaging in anticompetitive tactics that harm consumers, according to the Wall Street Journal . The Journal did not report on the nature and scope of the investigation but mentioned the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, which gave professional sports leagues antitrust protection to secure collectively-packaged television rights. Both the NFL and DOJ declined to comment to the Journal.
USA TODAY Sports also reached out to the NFL for comment. Dating back to last year, Congress has asked leagues to explain how the current media environment – increasingly dominated by streaming services – and new media rights deals are beneficial to the public. The NFL did not send a representative to a Senate Commerce Committee hearing last May to discuss the market segmentation that has made it costly for consumers to watch their favorite teams.
“I wish they had come,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said of the NFL at the time. “I think the issues that were discussed apply to them just like they apply to the leagues that were here.
” The chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition, Policy, and Consumer Rights, Mike Lee, wrote April 7 to Omeed A. Assefi, the acting Assistant Attorney General, and Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson and urged for the executive branch to investigate the SBA's interpretation. Sen.
Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and Rep. Pat Ryan, D-New York, urged the Federal Communications Commission earlier this week "to closely examine the trends that have directly contributed to the current state of sports streaming. " The FCC announced in February it sought public comment on how the changing media habits of leagues affected consumers.