Lawmakers question rising NFL streaming costs for fans
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, is holding a congressional hearing investigating the NFL’s streaming practices and rising costs for fans. Jordan discusses the 1961 Sports Broadcasting Act and antitrust concerns as fans face exorbitant prices to access all games across multiple platforms. He emphasizes the need for affordable access to NFL content for all constituents, not just those who can afford expensive packages.
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It’s no secret that finding a primetime NFL game is much harder thanks to streaming services taking over.
Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, and Netflix have each obtained exclusive rights to specific games, and that may only be the tip of the iceberg. The new way of watching sports, which is also more expensive than ever, was recently called into question during a hearing on the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961.
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Andrew Whitworth watches from TNF on the Prime set before an NFL game between the Denver Broncos and the New Orleans Saints at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana on October 17, 2024. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Andrew Whitworth is one of the faces of Amazon Prime Video’s NFL coverage, and while he believes in not “putting[ting] genie back in the bottle,” he also understands fans’ frustrations.
“I understand that. I understand that fans are trying to figure out how they want to see this or that or something else,” Whitworth told Pakinomist Digital about the new “path we’ve gone down.”
However, Whitworth also believes that watching sports is hardly any different than finding one’s favorite movies or TV shows across certain services.
“It’s always the most complicated thing ever, when I say, ‘Oh, I heard I’m going to watch this show.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, where is it?’ And then it’s the journey that you go on to find out what service has this TV show that you want to watch that someone told you about or whatever,” Whitworth said. “I think that’s kind of where these things are at this point. I don’t think I have a good answer for what a fan or anybody should do, other than it’s the kind of world we live in…
Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams talks to Andrew Whitworth on the Amazon Prime Thursday Night Football post show following the NFL game between the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on Dec. 21, 2023. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
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“I think sports is right next to where entertainment is, and right now a lot of it is going to these specific places to see these specific things. I think that’s just kind of the world we’re in right now. I think it’s all starting to figure itself out. And I’m sure like everything else in the world, we’re going to find ways to simplify it and make it easier on ourselves. But right now, I think it’s fitting into the industry. Over time, we’ll start to see the process become simpler.”
Strictly speaking, to stream every NFL game for the entire 2025 season on Sunday Ticket, Netflix, Peacock, Amazon Prime Video, ESPN Unlimited and NFL+ would have cost a minimum of $575, and for other (former Sunday Ticket viewers) almost $800.
The sports leagues have cashed in on the hub of streaming, with the NFL landing $1 billion a year to air “Thursday Night Football” on Amazon, for example. The exemption in the Sports Broadcasting Act adopted in 1961 only applies to broadcast television.
Andrew Whitworth talks on set for the Amazon Prime Thursday Night Football postgame show after the NFL game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New Orleans Saints at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La., on Oct. 19, 2023. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
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Courts have previously ruled that this does not apply to other media, including cable, satellite and streaming. The Sports Broadcasting Act includes a rule allowing blackouts of local games that still apply to out-of-market packages sold by the leagues.
