Fox is close to signing a deal that gives it half of the Big Ten's available media rights package, according to sources. Deal terms still are flexible -- both in terms of money and rights. However, the two sides have agreed on basic terms that will give Fox rights each school year to around 25 football games and 50 basketball games that it will carry on both the broadcast channel and FS1 starting in the fall of '17. The deal runs six years and could cost Fox as much as $250M per year, depending on the amount of rights the Big Ten conference puts in its second package. The Fox deal essentially is half of the package of games that had been with ESPN (as part of a 10-year, $1B deal that expires next spring) and CBS (as part of a 6-year, $72M basketball-only deal that also expires next spring). The Big Ten will return to the market to solicit bids on the second half of the package. The conference has the flexibility to allow for another net or two to pick up that half. ESPN will be one of several nets engaged for the second half of the package, along with CBS, NBC and Turner. The second package also is expected to include around 25 football and 50 basketball games and could also include rights to the football championship game every other year. However, sources caution that the rights in the second package are flexible and could include more -- or fewer -- games. The conference also is holding back some digital rights that it will offer to digital media companies, sources said. The deal does not include Big Ten Network's package of rights, which runs to '31-32. Fox already owns 51% of BTN. Fox' deal is a blow to ESPN, which sources said presented a non-competitive bid. Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany and outside counsel Jon Barrett negotiated the deal for the conference, which did not hire an outside media consultant. Fox Sports President Eric Shanks and Exec VP/Business Larry Jones negotiated on behalf of the net (John Ourand & Michael Smith, Staff Writers).
TAKE IT TO THE BANK: USA TODAY's Dan Wolken writes it "seems almost certain that Big Ten schools will soon be banking" more than $30M per year -- a number that "doesn't even include what the conference makes" off BTN and digital rights. When "it's all said and done, it could be" a $40M distribution. The "best part" of the deal is that the conference's media rights will "come up for bid again (and maybe again prior to that) before ESPN's 20-year agreement with the SEC expires" in '34. That is "astronomical money and will further widen the gap between the Big Ten, the SEC and everyone else." For "all the talk about" the Power Five conferences, it is "really a Power 2" (USA TODAY, 4/20). CBSSPORTS.com's Dennis Dodd cited a source as saying that Delany "sought a long-term deal" through '32. There may "not have been the money in the market for such a deal, or Delany may have strategically tried to line up the next deal close to when NFL deals expire with CBS, Fox and NBC" after the '22 season when "more money could be available in the market." Additional evidence that the Big Ten "signed a shorter-term deal hoping to cash in sooner next decade: The reported deal would expire before the existing agreements of the four other Power Five conferences" (CBSSPORTS.com, 4/19).
GOOD FIT: In Iowa, Marc Morehouse writes the Big Ten and Fox "seemed like a match," as Fox Sports "needs go-to live programming and a boost" for FS1. The agreement also feels "like a match since ESPN jumped in with ownership of the SEC Network." The conference "would be the top priority" on FS1 and Fox on "every day that isn't an NFL Sunday." The Big Ten's TV rights also will "be the last major sports property, pro or college, to be on the market in this decade." Football "would be the big trophy for Fox, which could offer a clear path" for Big Ten games to "have a national exposure on its main network." In the current deal with ABC/ESPN, the coverage "mainly has been on a regional basis" (Cedar Rapids GAZETTE, 4/20). YAHOO SPORTS' Nick Bromberg noted adding the Big Ten "would give the networks much more weekend inventory to compete with ESPN (and the SEC) and could serve as a boost in ratings for FS1, which hasn't gotten substantial viewer growth since it was established" in '13 (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 4/19).
