After several years, I will no longer pay for the Sunday Ticket, or the 3-4 other services you also now need to watch Packers games.

The NFL lost an antitrust case in 2024 in which a jury awarded $14 billion in damages to Sunday Ticket subscribers. That case is under appeal, with many analysts believing that the NFL will win on appeal.

I have read multiple articles on this issue. I can't find a single article that specifies what changes Rep. Fitzgerald and/or Congress might be proposing. I read Demovsky's non-informational article. I read Hodkiewicz' one really long paragraph article from the mailbag. I don't know if he is just parroting what the Packers say. Yes, the SBA is important in that it allows the NFL to negotiate on behalf of all of its constituent entities/teams. Passed in 1961, the SBA regulated over the air broadcasting because there is a limit to how many OTA stations there can be. That made sense in 1961, but cable has no such constraints. That rationale no longer exists. In 1961, the league was floundering financially, and that also is no long the case.

Hodkiewicz wrote: "The NFL, like every media entity, is doing what it must to meet tomorrow's consumers where they are today." Bull. Every TV for the last few years has an internal tuner that picks up OTA signals, so the consumers by default are OTA signal receivers. Limiting games to streaming services is strictly a money grab. The consumers all get over the air broadcasts so the NFL does not have to go anywhere else.

Hodkiewicz: "We'll see where Congress goes following the hearing this week, but this feels more and more like messaging to me than meaningful attempts at legislation or oversight. Truly a solution in search of [a] problem."

I have no difficulty seeing the problem, though I suppose it is really just a choice. I have not watched the Bucks or the Brewers for over 15 years. I guess the NBA and MLB are doing well enough without me. I actually subscribe to 4 streaming services plus spotify, so I probably won't be too affected.

I have written over and over these past years how important revenue sharing and a hard cap are to the Packers. We should keep an eye on what Congress does with the SBA. I don't know of any reason why the NFL could not continue with revenue sharing and a hard cap even if there are changes to the SBA. I am sure that the NFLPA is aware that there might be 69 fewer union jobs per city if GB, Buffalo, KC, and other small market teams have to fold.

This will get interesting over the next several years. The Packers are facing unique challenges that didn't exists before. Teams are now able to sell an small percentage of their team and make a large chunk of cash quickly. Packers don't have that option.

Then there is the argument of are the Packers, the smallest market in all of sports, can survive or thrive if the current SBA is trashed and teams start to sell their broadcasting rights individually. I think with the current standing of the team that has been a competitor since the mid 90s and has national appeal I would say they would be just fine. I also think if the Packers hit a rough patch like they did in the 70s, 80s and early 90s the team would end up folding. If you lose for a long period of time fans outside of Green Bay will drop off. During the 90s revival the old fans from the 60s where still around and they help bring back the Green and Gold as a national brand. They got their young family members to like the Packers. I meet lots of people in CO that said they are fans because their grandparents where in the 60s (in the 60s the Packers where the Yankees of football). Can the Packers remain a national brand and compete if they hit a long losing patch?

I also question if breaking up the SBA would be good for even the larger markets. Some teams will never generate the kind of revenue of the larger teams leaving them with the possibility of going bankrupt to keep up. I have no answer but it will be interesting how it goes the next several years.

Remember that Godell signed the last great (for him) contract with a very challenging goal. Owners are getting aggressive now, they want more and more money, they are going International very fast and they feel the power of sitting on a +10 billion franchise.
This Is the reason why politics started to look at the SBA, the owners aggressive strategy made fans angry, fans moved politcians.
They need to find a compromise. Owners greed can destroy football but at this point you can't stop them at all, you can Just find a compromise. GB Is in a weak position anyway. How can GB survive? we have to look at history.
GB had 2 difficult moments. In the 50s they were collapsing, then Vince Lombardi arrived and created a dinasty. In the 90s again GB was collapsing, when FA was created what saved us? to find the right man, Bob Harlan and Harlan was aggressive, GB signed the first great contract in NFL FA, Reggie White.
So now It Is time to go back to greatness, to stop mediocre like Mark Murphy or similar, to stop building houses. A small market team needs greatness, SBs, that Is the only way to survive.
we need a reset to find the right man again and get rid of gutey, lafleur, love they are not going anywhere they Just survive in the NFL.
unfortunately ed policy started great with the parsons trade but very soon became average or mediocre.

I'm not happy about having to pay multiple streaming services to watch the Packers, but I'll do it. I'm addicted.

As we consider all angles of the SBA, it's important to keep an eye on media consolidation. Mergers are creating fewer owners for the same outlets. It's greed vs greed in a giant club that we as fans do not belong to. It's not 1961 anymore in so many ways.

what many people and media don't get Is that the SBA cancellation would only be the 1st step. right after that the CAP system will collapse because of legal problems and would became similar to the MLB system with a luxury tax.
this would be a 2 punch letal move for GB.