OPINION:
The streaming boom of the past several years has revolutionized how we watch sports. Thanks to catered and often more affordable bundles offered by streaming platforms, it’s easier than ever for sports fans to sit down and watch their favorite teams and athletes. However, decades of progress toward increasingly consumer-friendly viewing bundles could be quickly undone thanks to new potential government regulations. This would set Americans and our sports-watching experience back decades, limiting access to games and driving up costs for millions of households. Fortunately, President Trump can ensure this doesn’t happen.
Streaming platforms have brought major events, such as NFL games, to vast audiences, as shown by the numbers from this past football season. This has been convenient for longtime fans and has introduced millions of new viewers to the world of sports without purchasing an expensive cable bundle. As an Olympian, it was especially endearing to see the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris being broadcast to cover every single event, even allowing viewers to access multiple live events at once. Streaming of the Olympics grew to more than 23.5 billion minutes, a 40% jump from all prior Summer and Winter Games combined. These are innovations consumers want, and innovative streaming platforms make that possible.
Given how cost-effective and easy it is for audiences to access games and view multiple events simultaneously on streaming platforms, it’s hardly surprising that millions of Americans are cutting the cord in favor of a better sports viewing experience. It isn’t surprising that 64% of voters prefer streaming over traditional satellite and cable, which should resonate with our president. Yet the Federal Communications Commission is pondering whether or not to regulate streaming the same way it regulates cable and satellite business models.
The FCC currently treats streaming services such as Hulu + Live or YouTubeTV under different rules than those it applies to cable. Proponents of changing the FCC rules claim that doing so will give local affiliates better negotiating power regarding content retransmission. In reality, this will upend the existing agreements those affiliates already have to carry as part of streaming bundles.
Meanwhile, sports consumers will be forced back into paying for the expensive bundles that once were the only choice in the days of cable, including their sports packages. This regulation would stifle competition and limit consumer choice, resulting in a worse viewing experience for you and me, and set a dangerous precedent about government overreach that won’t benefit anyone.
Consumers have made it abundantly clear that they prefer streaming to the overpriced packages of the cable and satellite era. Forcing them back into that expensive business model through regulatory overreach is unnecessary and anti-free market. Fortunately, Americans have a friend in Mr. Trump, possibly the most pro-consumer president of the modern age. I’m confident he will make sure the FCC does not overstep its authority and instead respects the wishes of the American people.
• Tommy Burleson is an All-American and national champion basketball player at North Carolina State University and a former member of the United States Olympic basketball team.
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