Fox v ESPN

**bhawk326** · 06-14-2010, 04:49 PM

I've heard that the reported increase in revenues for the Big 12 is going to come from a restructuring of their current TV contract with ESPN an entire year before the contract expires. Could this possibly be ESPN's way of trying to prevent Fox from becoming an equal or even stronger partner in college football to them?

Fox benefited the most by Texas joining the Big Ten (they already own 49% of the BTN) or the Pac-16 (my guess is they would own 49% of their network due to FSN already having a deal with the Pac-10). Also, it has been widely reported that the bidding war between Fox and ESPN over the rights to ACC sports caused the doubling of their contract. Could ESPN have looked at the landscape of realignment and seen a weaker position for themselves if they allowed it to happen instead of overpaying now for the rights to retain Big 12 football even though they had another year of the current contract?

Since reports are now coming out that each team can explore forming their own network (read: Texas getting the Longhorn network, no other team or the conference getting one) and they will likely eliminate their championship game, only a large increase in the ESPN contract (at least doubling it) would seem to allow for the projections that the conference is publishing.

**BigJCy** · 06-14-2010, 05:18 PM

Yep, I do think ESPN jumped in and in my opinion overpaid (good for ISU) for the Big 12 to stay intact so that way Fox wouldn't get control of the "Super Conference" the new Pac 16.

**Rogue52** · 06-14-2010, 05:22 PM

So ESPN let Joe Schad run around today saying the Big XII was dead? I think it's Fox wanting to keep ESPN's influence from growing.

Time will tell.

**PGreen ISU '92** · 06-14-2010, 05:24 PM

I think a book could probably be written about the conference realignment events over the course of the past 30 days. What a soap opera. And, unfortunately, it's not over yet.

**pyrocyz** · 06-14-2010, 05:25 PM

Originally Posted by Rogue52

So ESPN let Joe Schad run around today saying the Big XII was dead? I think it's Fox wanting to keep ESPN's influence from growing.

Time will tell.

It may have been a diversion. Keep Fox and the other networks guessing.

**bhawk326** · 06-14-2010, 05:27 PM

Rogue52, it may be that Fox wins either way. Either they get their TV rights now (Texas leaves the Big 12) or they up the ante on less lucrative products now (ACC and Big 12) to cut margins over at ESPN. With ESPN already at market saturation, how does paying over twice the current contract for the rights to the ACC and Big 12 help ESPN's bottom line?

**isuno1fan** · 06-14-2010, 05:28 PM

I also think it is Fox.

**clonedude** · 06-14-2010, 05:29 PM

Just put Fox and ESPN execs in a room together and let them try to outbid each other.

We may be in for more than 17 million!!

**Clonehomer** · 06-14-2010, 05:32 PM

Why would Fox want to stop the Pac16 development? They had a 16 team mega-conference in their hands. I don't think they'd break that up by offering a Big12 deal. Here's another idea, what about NBC/Comcast? If there is talk about ND being relegated to Versus, then maybe they want the Big12 to fill the hole. They have the pull and the medium to startup a network. It's just a thought. i have nothing behind it. It just seems that there are too many reasons for it not to be ESPN or Fox.

**hurdleisu24** · 06-14-2010, 05:35 PM

ESPN and its networks, as the primary college sports broadcasters in the country, seem the most likely source of the money. But a source with knowledge of recent Big 12 television planning said that FOX wanted to remain a significant partner with the league. One recent plan included a Saturday afternoon or evening conference game of the week on FOX's over-the-air network (similar to the CBS-SEC partnership) as well as more nationally televised games in several sports on FSN, a cable network. That deal, the source said, could nearly double what the Big 12 collected in its last agreement with FOX.

**Rhoadhoused** · 06-14-2010, 05:45 PM

what were we getting per year before from the tv deal?

**hurdleisu24** · 06-14-2010, 05:48 PM

like 7-9 million

**bhawk326** · 06-14-2010, 05:51 PM

hurdleisu24, interesting development. What source did you hear about the new Fox deal from? Also, would that doubling just be a doubling of Fox's contract or would it be a doubling of the overall conference deal?

**cc1091** · 06-14-2010, 07:00 PM

Originally Posted by bhawk326

I've heard that the reported increase in revenues for the Big 12 is going to come from a restructuring of their current TV contract with ESPN an entire year before the contract expires. Could this possibly be ESPN's way of trying to prevent Fox from becoming an equal or even stronger partner in college football to them?

edit

Fox? NO. Perhaps ESPN is attempting to make sure that ESPN/ABC doesn't become second fiddle to the Big 10 Network when it comes to games involving big 10 teams, therefore they pump a little money into the other conference that is most directly opposed and most imminently suffering to maintain the status quo.

Long ago Fox (Fox Sports Net North) in the Twin Cities became mostly a Minnesota Golden Gopher network (that is, when they weren't broadcasting the Twins or some other local pro sports team). I hear it is a similar story in Wisconsin where they too have a 'Fox Sports North' that shows mostly Badger sports and Brewer baseball/Bucks basketball.

**hurdleisu24** · 06-14-2010, 07:03 PM

KZNE radio in College Station, Texas, is reporting (via Twitter) that A&M, Texas and Oklahoma will each receive about $20 million per year under a revamped television rights deal that includes Fox Sports. A TV deal that satisfied the conference's power schools was vital to the Big 12's survival. Commissioner Dan Beebe convinced Texas to consider his plan to deliver such as deal before leaving for the Pac-10