Blackout is avoided with sellout

By STEPHEN F. HOLDER, Times Staff Writer
Published January 4, 2008

TAMPA - Any potential for a blackout of Sunday's Giants-Bucs wild-card game at Raymond James Stadium was eliminated Thursday when the NFL declared it a sellout.

Games that do not sell out 72 hours before kickoff are subject to a blackout within 75 miles of the stadium.

Though the Bucs as of Thursday afternoon said the game was not officially sold out - there were fewer than 500 tickets left, they said - NFL corporate communications manager Dan Masonson said the league does not consider high-priced club seating when attempting to declare a sellout for television purposes.

Also, the Bucs and Ticketmaster agreed to lift a prohibition on non-Florida residents purchasing tickets. Until Thursday, only those with Florida credit-card billing addresses were permitted to purchase tickets online.

But at the urging of New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Ticketmaster, after consulting with the Bucs, decided to rescind the rule.

Cuomo told the Associated Press the policy "raises issues, interstate commerce issues. There are constitutional prohibitions against states discriminating against other states' residents or impeding business by other states. There are possible discrimination issues."

The policy was implemented largely to prevent Giants fans from purchasing tickets in large numbers.

"We wanted to ensure that our fans here in Florida had the best opportunity to purchase tickets to this week's game," Bucs spokesman Jeff Kamis said this week.

[Last modified January 3, 2008, 22:21:23]