More NFL games blacked out due to bad economy?

[jsu5381m]

With the recession we are going through now and rising gas prices, do you expect more NFL games to be blacked out than in years past due to ticket sales being too high?

 

[Mark Giardina]

With the recession we are going through now and rising gas prices, do you expect more NFL games to be blacked out than in years past due to ticket sales being too high?

If local games are blacked out do to high gas prices and people not driving to football stadiums, then it is very possible this will also have an impact on television ads.

Say for example some local agency wants to buy time during a Buffalo Bills-New York Jets game. But if that game is blacked out in both communities, the local ad agency isn't going to make a buy.

IMHO I don't see the price of tickets or gasoline impacting that many televised games. Gas prices have been on the decline. Besides there are enough fans who want to get away for a day of fun and leisure that I don't see a problem with massive blackouts of local games.

The only time there are TV blackouts is when nobody wants to spend money for tickets to see two lousey teams play on a certain Sunday.

 

[Markxxx]

Gas has been pretty steady in Chicago at least. Hovering around the upper three dollar mark. Besides people still have lots of disposable income. They have high speed and cell phones, and gadgets and such. They are only hurting because they have to sacrifice an extra. For football fans it'll mean just charging more or giving up another type of extra.

 

[jsu5381m]

What about the Lions where the economy has been crap in the last 30 years and the team stinks?

 

[kyscott]

With the recession we are going through now and rising gas prices, do you expect more NFL games to be blacked out than in years past due to ticket sales being too high?

Two points. First, we are not in a recession. Economists define a recession as "gross domestic product growth is negative for two or more consecutive quarters." With that being said, the Bureau of Economic Analysis most recent report said that the second quarter GDP grew by 1.9%. The first quarter GDP grew by .9%. Slowed down? Yes. Recession? No.
Secondly, gas prices are coming down. In the Louisville area, they have dropped from a quarter to 40 cents in some places.

To answer your question, the NFL would be foolish to black out more games. Some people are driving less, and to black out their favorite teams would not harbor any warm and fuzzy feelings from the fans. And as Mark pointed out, to black out more games will also have a downward effect on ad rates. The networks don't need that because they have to pay the outrageous fees to the NFL for the privilige of broadcasting the games. The economy rarely has much of an effect on sporting events or the way they are covered.

 

[Neil56]

It's my understanding that a game gets blacked out only if it's not sold out 72 hours in advance.

Just wondering, does that apply to pre-season games?

 

[dhett]

National TV/Re: More NFL games blacked out due to bad economy?

To answer your question, the NFL would be foolish to black out more games. Some people are driving less, and to black out their favorite teams would not harbor any warm and fuzzy feelings from the fans. And as Mark pointed out, to black out more games will also have a downward effect on ad rates. The networks don't need that because they have to pay the outrageous fees to the NFL for the privilige of broadcasting the games. The economy rarely has much of an effect on sporting events or the way they are covered.

It's not a matter of whether or not the NFL would black out more games. Their rules are set: if a TV station's signal comes within a 75-mile radius of the stadium, the game is blacked out, unless it sells out 72 hours in advance. Good economy, bad economy - the rules are the same. Now, on an individual basis, the NFL can give an extra 24 hours if the game is close to selling out, but that only happens if it's a marquee game, including playoff games. To give extensions for run-of-the-mill games would undercut their 72-hour policy in a good economy. The NFL didn't get where they're at being stupid with their TV policies - even if I don't agree with them.

The economy is not in a recession for just the reasons you cite. There are many who say America feels like they're in a recession, but I think that's more the power of suggestion from an endless drumbeat by a political party that wishes to regain power, and by the many like-minded pundits in the media, who have the added desire to see compelling news to help the bottom line. Recession sells, slowdown doesn't. High energy prices and the ripple effect that it has on prices throughout the economy have squeezed people to be sure, but again, not to the extent you see on the news - that's sensationalism. I still think Phil Gramm was right when he said it was more of a mental recession - people see their own lives as OK, but think everyone else is in a mess, again probably based on what they see on TV and what they hear from those politicians seeking power.

I predict there will be an effect on ticket sales, but a very small one, and not enough to affect TV blackout rules, because once a game sells out, you have no idea what pent-up demand was out there for those tickets. Furthermore, I have observed that business is hopping at movie theaters (even the first-run theaters), restaurants are full, people are still lined up to buy the latest I-Phone, and cable and satellite companies are still doing brisk business - and not just in the "lifeline" packages. Those being squeezed the most in this economy are the same ones who didn't have much disposable income when times were good. (Or, they disposed of it as fast as it came in.) And they weren't buying football tickets then, either.

If there is a team that could be hurt more than others, it's those very Buffalo Bills that Mark Giardina cited, due to a far-flung fan base.

 

[ixnay]

Say for example some local agency wants to buy time during a Buffalo Bills-New York Jets game. But if that game is blacked out in both communities, the local ad agency isn't going to make a buy.

Mr. Giardina, I thought only the home cities were blacked out in the event of not selling out in a timely fashion? Or is this a new policy being implemented in 2008 (both cities involved get blacked out if no timely sellout)?

As for preseason games, I watched a few seconds (on WBAL-11) of tonight's Ravens/Patriots tilt. Live. From Foxboro.

ixnay

 

[KML0224]

Blackouts only happen on the home team's end and in the regular season.

 

[OhioMediaWatch]

The economy stinks here in Northeast Ohio as much as it does anywhere, and every single Cleveland Browns game will continue to sell out.

 

[KeithE4]

Say for example some local agency wants to buy time during a Buffalo Bills-New York Jets game. But if that game is blacked out in both communities, the local ad agency isn't going to make a buy.

Mr. Giardina, I thought only the home cities were blacked out in the event of not selling out in a timely fashion? Or is this a new policy being implemented in 2008 (both cities involved get blacked out if no timely sellout)?

A game is blacked out on any station that can be seen within 75 miles of the stadium if it is not sold out within 72 hours (exceptions being made which reduce the time to 48 hours - this game would probably be one of those exceptions now that Broadway Brett has arrived in NYC. ;D ).

The above-mentioned Bills-Jets game would not be blacked out in Buffalo since it is at the Meadowlands (by the order the teams were typed, this is a Jets home game). It would, however, be blacked out in NYC, Philadelphia, Hartford, and maybe Albany & Scranton (depending on whether their CBS affiliates can be picked up within 75 miles of E. Rutherford NJ) if the game was not sold out. If the game was in Buffalo, it would be blacked out in Buffao, Erie, & Rochester. Don't know about Toronto - either for games in Buffalo (do CBC or CTV carry NFL football?) or those Bills games that will be played there.

If the game is on ESPN or NFL Network, a local station in both teams' cities only would be allowed to carry the network feed, subject to the blackout rule for the home team (ESPN or NFL Network would also be blacked out if the game was not sold out). Adjacent markets would not be allowed to put the game on a local station.

As for preseason games, I watched a few seconds (on WBAL-11) of tonight's Ravens/Patriots tilt. Live. From Foxboro.

It was a Ravens road game. If it had been in Baltimore, the blackout rule applies to preseason games as well. It would be shown the next day or later that night depending on the day of the game.

 

[WordLife]

The 49ers and Raiders were blacked out last night in the Bay Area. It was strange however, because in years past, it was considered a 49ers road game and therefore it was televised.

However, yesterday it was blacked out (they did play in Oakland) and was aired at 10 p.m. and 11:35 p.m. on the local stations.

 

[dhett]

Any NYC home game is probably a bad example - do they ever fail to sell out?