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Comcast, Big Ten Network Reach Broad Multimedia Agreement for Big Ten Network Content
Comcast Corporation and the Big Ten Network announced today that they
have reached a long-term multimedia agreement for Comcast to carry Big
Ten Network programming across television, broadband and video-on-demand
in time for the 2008 college football season.
Under the terms of the agreement, Comcast will initially launch the
Network as part of its expanded basic level of service to promote it to
the majority of its customers residing in states with Big Ten
universities (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin,
and Pennsylvania, with the exception of the Philadelphia region which
will launch on a broadly distributed digital level of service) starting
August 15th. (Comcast does not have systems in Iowa, the eighth Big Ten
state.) In Spring 2009, Comcast may elect to move the network to a
broadly distributed digital level of service in most of its systems in
these states. Comcast’s digital customers in
the Big Ten states will also have immediate access to live Big Ten games
and events in high definition, Big Ten programming via Comcast’s
video-on-demand platform, and a wide array of conference-related content
through Comcast.net.
Outside of the Big Ten states that Comcast serves, Comcast has the
option to provide Big Ten Network programming on any level of service,
including its Sports Entertainment Package.
Officials from Comcast and Big Ten Network said they look forward to
utilizing both traditional and emerging media to bring more Big Ten
programming to fans than was ever available to them before.
"We are very pleased with the agreement we
have reached with the Big Ten Network to carry hundreds of live Big Ten
events,” said Madison Bond, Executive Vice
President, Content Acquisition, Comcast Cable. "We
will be providing our customers with Big Ten programming through our
signature video-on-demand service, and will have lots of highlights,
replays, scores and more through Comcast.net so fans can keep pace with
Big Ten action whenever they want to.”
Big Ten Network President Mark Silverman said the network is thrilled to
have Comcast as a distribution partner. "This
agreement allows us to reach many more Big Ten fans with our programming
because of the high concentration of Comcast subscribers in Big Ten
states. With the Comcast deal now in place, the Big Ten Network will be
available to more than two-thirds of all homes in the Big Ten Country.”
Big Ten Network already produces more high-definition television content
than any new sports network in television history. Over the next year,
more than 400 live Big Ten sporting events will be carried by the Big
Ten Network in high definition, including football, men’s
and women’s basketball, baseball, softball
and soccer, as well as other NCAA-sponsored sports.
Comcast’s digital customers who receive the
network will have On Demand access to programming such as weekly
extended highlights and condensed game replays from around the
conference, classic Big Ten sporting events, bowl game coverage and
coaches’ shows, plus original campus
programming and nightly studio shows from Big Ten Network, most of which
is available in high definition.
Comcast also has the ability to deliver much of that same content to its
Comcast High Speed Internet customers via the company’s
Comcast.net portal. Additionally, Comcast has the rights to carry
certain network content on Fancast.com.
About Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq:CMCSA, CMCSK) (http://www.comcast.com)
is the nation's leading provider of entertainment, information and
communications products and services. With 24.7 million cable customers,
14.1 million high-speed Internet customers, and 5.2 million voice
customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development,
management and operation of broadband cable systems and in the delivery
of programming content.
Comcast's content networks and investments include E! Entertainment
Television, Style Network, The Golf Channel, VERSUS, G4, PBS KIDS
Sprout, TV One, ten Comcast SportsNet networks and Comcast Interactive
Media, which develops and operates Comcast's Internet business. Comcast
also has a majority ownership in Comcast-Spectacor, whose major holdings
include the Philadelphia Flyers NHL hockey team, the Philadelphia 76ers
NBA basketball team and two large multipurpose arenas in Philadelphia.
About the Big Ten Network
The Big Ten Network is dedicated to covering the Big Ten Conference and
its 11 member institutions. The Big Ten Network provides unprecedented
access to an extensive schedule of conference sports events and shows;
original programs in academics, the arts and sciences; campus
activities; and associated personalities. Sports programming includes
live coverage of more major men's and women's events than ever before,
along with news, highlights and analysis, all complemented by hours of
university-produced campus programming. The network is available to all
cable and satellite carriers and television distributors nationwide,
with most programs offered in stunning high-definition television
(HDTV). The Big Ten Network is a joint venture between subsidiaries of
the Big Ten Conference and Fox Cable Networks. http://newsticker.welt.de/index.php?channel=fin&module=smarthouse&id=743648
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Joined: 2/6/2007
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Comcast, Big Ten Network reach deal
Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal - by John Vomhof Jr. Staff WriterComcast Corp. and the Big Ten Network have reached a long-term deal for Comcast to carry the digital channel.
The deal, which had been expected, means that University of Minnesota
sports fans will be able to watch more Gophers games next year. The Big
Ten Network will cover more than 400 live Big Ten Conference sporting
events over the next year, and Philadelphia-based Comcast (Nasdaq:
CMCSA) is the Twin Cities' largest cable provider.
Under the deal, Comcast will preview the network as part of its
expanded basic level of service starting Aug. 15 and running through
the upcoming football and basketball seasons. In spring 2009, Comcast
will have the option to move the network to a broadly distributed
digital level of service.
Outside of the Big Ten states, Comcast has the option to provide
Big Ten Network at any level of service, including its premium Sports
Entertainment Package, or can opt not to carry the network at all in
those areas.
"This agreement allows us to reach many more Big Ten fans with our
programming because of the high concentration of Comcast subscribers in
Big Ten states," Big Ten Network President Mark Silverman said in a
statement. "With the Comcast deal now in place, the Big Ten Network
will be available to more than two-thirds of all homes in Big Ten
Country."
The deal also may provide a framework for negotiations with other cable carriers Time Warner, Mediacom and Charter.
Chicago-based Big Ten Networks is a joint venture between subsidiaries of the Big Ten Conference and Fox Cable Networks. [email protected] | (612) 288-2101
http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2008/06/16/daily34.html
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Joined: 2/6/2007
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Big Ten Network and Comcast reach agreement
by The Ann Arbor News
Thursday June 19, 2008, 4:21 PM
After more than a year of negotiating, the Big Ten Network and
Comcast have reached a multi-year agreement that will allow millions of
college sports fans to watch their favorite schools on television this
fall.
Starting August 15, the network will appear on Comcast's expanded
basic level of service for customers residing in states with Big Ten
ties, including Michigan.
"This agreement allows us to reach many more Big
Ten fans with our programming because of the high concentration of
Comcast subscribers in Big Ten states," network president Mark
Silverman said in a statement.
College football fans scrambled to watch their favorite teams play
elsewhere last season when the network and Comcast could not reach an
agreement.
Negotiations stalled because the sides could not agree on whether
the network would be available on the cable company's expanded basic
service level or on a sports programming tier available at an extra
costs to customers. http://www.mlive.com/wolverines/football/index.ssf/2008/06/big_ten_network_and_comcast_re.html
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Big Ten Network, Comcast reach deal
After two
years of acrimonious negotiations, the Big Ten Network and Comcast
announced a deal today that will place the channel on expanded basic
cable in Indiana, giving far more viewers easy access to many
conference sporting events. Comcast, the largest cable company in
Indianapolis, the state and the nation, will carry the Big Ten Network
on expanded basic cable from Aug. 15 until the spring of 2009. After
that, the company has the option of moving the channel to digital cable
-- but not a sports tier -- provided there are enough digital
subscribers. Digital cable is more expensive than basic cable.
The placement on expanded basic includes Comcast systems in the Big
Ten's geographic area, except Philadelphia. Outside the Big Ten's
geographic area, Comcast can place the channel on any level of service,
or none.
The Big Ten Network has been controversial since it was
announced in June 2006 and launched on television in August 2007.
Although the league's best games
were still available on traditional television outlets, numerous fans
in Indiana missed other games to which they had easy access in the
past.
From Star Files
Big Ten Network, Comcast nearing deal
March 12, 2008
By Mark Alesia
Indiana
and Purdue open the men's basketball Big Ten Tournament on Friday with
games televised by the Big Ten Network, meaning it will be a familiar
situation for numerous fans of both schools.
They won't be able to see the games on cable television.
But
with a report this week that the Big Ten Network and Comcast, the
largest cable company in the nation and state, are close to a deal, it
appears the situation will improve by next football season.
A
person with knowledge of the negotiations confirmed a Sports Business
Journal report that Comcast has agreed to the "framework" of a deal to
carry the network on expanded basic cable.
Comcast has about
six million subscribers in the Big Ten area, including 900,000 in
Indiana. The company also covers much of Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota
and Pennsylvania.
Spokesmen for Comcast and the network expressed optimism a deal could be finalized.
It's
unclear why Comcast would back off its demand to put the channel on a
pay-extra digital sports tier, although the Sports Business Journal
reported Comcast will be allowed to place the Big Ten Network on
digital cable in Philadelphia.
Comcast has said it is trying to keep the price of cable down by not forcing everyone to receive an expensive sports channel.
The
Big Ten Network said Comcast and other cable companies abuse their
power by giving favored channel placement to inferior networks they
own.
Although the Big Ten Network is available from both
satellite TV carriers, DirecTV and Dish Network, it has not been
available from the largest cable companies. Numerous cable customers in
Indiana missed games such as IU's football win over Purdue last
November. The schools also had several men's basketball games televised
exclusively by the network.
Before the network launched last
August, Big Ten officials said they believed Comcast was the crucial
player in the cable dispute, and that other cable companies would
follow Comcast's lead.
The dispute became protracted and nasty, with dueling advertisements, Web sites and spokesmen tearing down the other side.
Last month, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo called the dispute a "PR nightmare."
The
Big Ten said it created the channel in part to address escalating
facility costs in intercollegiate sports. The Sports Business Journal
reported that the contract gives schools an average of $10.18 million
per year through the life of the 20-year deal. The payment for this
academic year is $6.1 million.
The Big Ten is a 51 percent owner of the network. Fox owns 49 percent, and guarantees annual payments to the schools. http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080619/SPORTS/80619046/1004
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Big Ten Network, Comcast reach agreement
By JUDD ZULGAD, Star Tribune
Last update: June 19, 2008 - 2:56 PM
The Big Ten Network will be carried on Comcast cable, which includes most of the Twin Cities.
The sides officially announced their agreement today.
The
deal will be available on expanded basic beginning Aug. 15 and
extending through the basketball season. At that point, Comcast may
elect to move the network to a digital level of service.
The agreement is good news for fans of University of Minnesota
sports. The university had several events on the network last season,
including football, men’s and women’s basketball and men’s hockey.
The Gophers’ football opener Aug. 30 against Northern Illinois will be aired by the BTN.
Comcast
is the largest cable provider in Minnesota, with about 600,000
subscribers (including western Wisconsin), and serves much of the
metropolitan area.
Charter Communications, which has about
300,000 subscribers in Minnesota, and Mediacom, which is right around
110,000, aren’t believed to be close to deals with the BTN, but an
agreement with Comcast will help jump-start other talks. The BTN
already is available on DirecTV and Dish Network.
Earlier this week, the Chicago Tribune reported the BTN made a
concession by coming down in its per-month, per-subscriber asking price
from $1.10 to 70 or 80 cents. Indications are it will be around 70
cents per subscriber.
While the University of Minnesota and
other Big Ten schools aren’t on the front line of the talks with
Comcast, they certainly are benefitting from the channel’s existence.
Each institution is getting $7.5 million a year as a result of the
venture.
http://www.startribune.com/sports/gophers/20569814.html?location_refer=Timberwolves
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