Wisconsin Athletic Association Granted Right to Restrict Live Sports Streaming

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By: Tiffany Kaiser | Daily Tech

A Chicago appeals court upheld a lower court ruling yesterday that a Wisconsin sports association can limit who streams its games in their entirety live on the Internet, which could eventually have First Amendment implications for U.S. media outlets all over the country.

In 2008, the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) sued The Post-Crescent, which is an Appleton newspaper, for streaming its high school football playoff games live on the Internet. The WIAA stated that it requires the money made by signing exclusive contracts with a single video-production company (which is American-HiFi) for live-streaming tournaments in order to survive. The newspaper, on the other hand, said it needed easy access to sporting events to provide local communities and sports fans with the coverage they desire.

Last year, a U.S. District judge ruled that the WIAA was able to hold a contract for exclusive streaming rights to Wisconsin collegiate sports tournaments. Gannett Co., the owner of the newspaper and the Wisconsin Newspaper Association then filed an appeal.































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