The MLB's Sports Data Related Activities Should Be Subject to Antitrust Scrutiny: Why Potential Plaintiffs Will Not Strike Out to the Baseball Antitrust Exemption

Lower courts have long struggled to interpret and apply the professional baseball antitrust exemption created by the Supreme Court. Some courts have interpreted the antitrust exemption broadly, and others have interpreted it very narrowly. Given the MLB's recent potentially anticompetitive beha...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Iowa law review 2022-05, Vol.107 (4), p.1777-1800
Main Author: Haggard, Dylan J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Antitrust law
Antitrust laws
Conspiracy
Data entry
Evaluation
Exemption (Law)
Interstate commerce
Laws, regulations and rules
Professional baseball
Professional basketball
Restraint of trade
Sherman Antitrust Act 1890-US
Sports betting
Trusts
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Summary:Lower courts have long struggled to interpret and apply the professional baseball antitrust exemption created by the Supreme Court. Some courts have interpreted the antitrust exemption broadly, and others have interpreted it very narrowly. Given the MLB's recent potentially anticompetitive behavior related to sports data, it could find itself facing an antitrust suit. This Note suggests that district courts should adopt a narrow interpretation of the baseball antitrust exemption and argues that even under the broadest interpretation of the baseball antitrust exemption, the actions of the MLB do not fall within the scope of the exemption. This Note also argues that the collection and distribution of sports data is an independent industry wholly collateral to the game of baseball and, therefore, outside the scope of the professional baseball antitrust exemption.
ISSN:0021-0552