The Pac-12 Network

A few months after Pac-12 Commissioner, Larry Scott, announced the new Pac-12 media deal with ESPN and Fox, Scott unveiled the Conference’s next step to generate significant revenue: it’s own Conference Network. On July 27, 2011, it was revealed that “Beginning in August 2012, the Pacific 12 Conference will offer one primary national channel and six regional channels matching up teams paired in the same area (USC and UCLA, for example) that will televise 350 events annually on the main channel and 500 more regionally. So far the Pac-12 has signed cable providers Time Warner Cable, Comcast, Cox and Bright House to distribute the seven network channels” (Pucin).

Each of the six regional channels will be dictated by school rivalries. Thus, the six channels will include the following schools, respectively:

1. University of Arizona and Arizona State University

2. University of California-Berkeley and Stanford University

3. University of California-Los Angeles and University of Southern California

4. University of Colorado and University of Utah

5. University of Oregon and Oregon State University

6. University of Washington and Washington State University

“Scott said the regional networks such as the Southern California channel dedicated to USC and UCLA content would be carried on expanded basic cable and that the national network will probably be found on digital basic cable in Pac-12 markets and on digital sports tiers that require extra fees in the rest of the country” (Pucin).

Larry Scott insisted that “the conference will keep ownership of the Pac-12 Networks” (LA Times). Furthermore, he said "With this arrangement, every [Pac-12] football game and every men's basketball game will be available to a national audience on television” (Pucin).

The previous deal made with ESPN and Fox will work in cooperation with the Pac-12 Network. Luckily enough, Commissioner Scott spoke in my Sports Journalism class recently and I was able to ask him how these two separate deals will co-exist. There are several terms in this co-existence:

1. ESPN and Fox each get to pick 4 football games right off the bat which they wish to air instead of the Pac-12 Network
2. After that there will be a weekly draft of games, in which each television entity (ESPN, Fox, the Pac-12 Network), will rotate for which gets first pick. For example, in the first week ESPN might get the first pick of which game they wish to air. Then, Fox would get their pick, and then the Pac-12 Network would get the third pick. It would then go around in that order until all games were covered. The next week Fox might have the first pick, and the week after the Pac-12 Network might have the first pick.
3. The Pac-12 also agreed to play eight weekday football games next season, all of which ESPN and Fox get to air exclusively (except for one, which will air on the Pac-12 Network) (Scott).

While football games were clearly the biggest factor in this deal, since football is the major revenue sport in the college athletics, Scott told our class that he is most excited for how the Pac-12 Network will impact the non-revenue sports, such as men’s baseball, men’s tennis, and all women’s sports. Scott said that usually only college men’s football and basketball air on television, so the Pac-12 Network will grant unprecedented exposure for the non-revenue sports (Scott). It will be the first time that a USC Baseball fan, for example, will get to see the majority of USC Baseball games on television.

Besides airing the various athletic games of the Pac-12 Conference, the Pac-12 Network will also attempt to draw attention to the academic achievements of the Pac-12 Conference. In essence, “it sounds like the network is also serious about spotlighting academics. That doesn't necessarily mean televising a chemistry lecture, but rather spotlighting, say, a prominent Silicon Valley executive with a Pac-12 diploma.’ There's some very famous iconic personalities that have come out of this conference that we're going to tie in to this network,’ said Scott” (Mandel).

This new deal will give even more revenue to the Pac-12 Conference (and each of the schools in it), but no specific figure has been given as to how much money that will be. Thus, the schools in the Pac-12 conference will have yet another revenue stream to upgrade their facilities, hire new coaches, and start new athletic teams.

Works Cited

Mandel, Stewart. “Larry Scott, Pac-12 networks look to break sports media frontiers." Sports Illustrated. N.p., 15 Feb. 2012. Web. 2 Apr. 2012. .

Pucin, Diane. “Pac-12 Networks are coming.” LA Times. N.p., 28 July 2011. Web. 2 Apr. 2012. .

Scott, Larry. Class at USC interview. 28 Mar. 2012.