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Villanova latest to join Fox’s multimedia rights roster

Fox Sports has strengthened its business hold in the Big East Conference with a new multimedia rights agreement at Villanova University.

Villanova, which earlier agreed to break off negotiations with its former rights holder, IMG College, will begin working with Fox at the start of the 2016-17 academic year this summer. IMG College, which had been with Villanova since 2001, has the rights until the end of basketball season.

Villanova, a private school based in the suburbs of Philadelphia, did not release financial terms on its new 10-year contract, but most multimedia rights guarantees for schools in the Big East range from the low to mid-seven figures annually.

Mark Jackson, Villanova’s new athletic director, led negotiations for the school. Dan Shell, Fox’s vice president of college properties, engineered the deal for the media giant, which owns the multimedia rights to Georgetown and the Big East as well. Fox also owns the league’s TV rights.

Jackson, who was named Villanova’s new AD in August, came from Southern California, where Fox manages the Trojans’ rights. Jackson and Shell had worked together before, and that relationship helped push the deal forward, both sides said.

“Villanova is a big brand in a conference that’s a strategic fit for us,” Shell said of the school that had the nation’s No. 3-ranked men’s basketball squad last week.

The agreement includes many of the customary assets, including radio rights and corporate sponsorship. Jackson also noted that he expects high-profile basketball coach Jay Wright to be involved in promoting the school with sponsors and possibly endorsements, when appropriate.

The components of the deal are a mix, including a guarantee and a revenue-split that enables the Wildcats to share in whatever success Fox has with sales once they hit certain thresholds.

“Without getting into the numbers, we’ll see a significant increase in our guarantee, along with a revenue-share that is very attainable,” Jackson said. “Fox is going to be entrenched in everything we do, which is what we saw at USC. They’re not going to be sitting outside as a rights holder. Everything we’re doing is going to be in conjunction with them so we grow together.”

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