By Mallory Mattingly
Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin isn’t happy that the Green Bay Packers will play the Los Angeles Rams on Thanksgiving Eve — exclusively on Netflix.
“Rooting for our favorite sports teams brings all walks of life together – but in order for that to happen, families need to actually be able to watch the games. Gigantic streaming services and big sports leagues have created a complicated and expensive maze of subscriptions that either stop fans from watching their teams altogether or gouge fans to simply watch the teams they love,” Baldwin said.
So, she introduced the For the Fans Act, which would “give fans free live broadcasts of their home state’s professional sports teams,” Fox News Digital reported.
…”it shouldn’t take ten different subscriptions and a second mortgage to watch sports,” Baldwin said of the bill. “My bill will stop the big streaming platforms and sports leagues from blacking out games for fans and ensure local fans always have a single place they can go to watch their team for free.”
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After the NFL and Netflix announced which games will be streaming next season, Baldwin voiced Wisconsin sports fans’ frustration that they’d need to pay for a Netflix subscription just to watch the game.
“As the cost of just about everything continues to rise, the NFL is once again asking Wisconsinites to spend their hard-earned money on another streaming service,” she said. “Enough is enough. My For the Fans Act would stop this exact scenario and prevent Wisconsin families from being forced to pay for Netflix just to watch the Packers play this Thanksgiving.”
The For the Fans Act would give consumers better access to pro sports broadcasts by “requiring free viewing access for local fans and ending blackouts on league-owned streaming services, like NBA League Pass or MLB.tv.” It would apply to professional baseball, basketball, football, hockey and soccer leagues.
While “local” media markets already get access to those games, the definition of “local,” especially in Wisconsin, leaves a lot to be desired.
“For the NFL in Wisconsin, our local market is only defined as Green Bay and Milwaukee, leaving the majority of Wisconsin’s media markets (Wausau, La Crosse, Eau Claire, Madison, and Superior) forced to pay to watch the game on streaming. So, while NFL games are available over broadcast for some fans, it leaves the majority of Wisconsin out,” Baldwin’s office told Fox News Digital. “To address this, Senator Baldwin’s For the Fans Act would require major leagues to provide a live, free option for all local fans, defined in our bill as the state where the home team is based.”
The For the Fans Act would certainly help fans save money when they want to watch their favorite teams.
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