Realignment could be done for now

VideoEagle · April 23, 2013

The ACC's grant of rights by all of the members, including the incoming members, at what I've heard but can't confirm is at all levels, might have stopped the carousel. It makes any ACC school much less valuable for media to any other conferences. And since the Big XII has set a level of $26 million a year for any incoming schools to be worth dividing the pie any more they are probably done.

I haven't seen if the ACC's team has any allowance for increased payouts by adding schools to their conference. I doubt it does because 1. they don't want to encourage movement and 2. if the SEC didn't get any more for A&M and MIzzu I don't see anyone the ACC could get being worth more. If the ACC isn't expanding, then the AAC is safe which means CUSA is probably safe which means the Sun Belt is probably safe.

Here's the article.

Arkstfan · April 23, 2013

If they are swapping grant of rights for the exit penalty they just made it much easier to leave.

VideoEagle · April 23, 2013

If they are swapping grant of rights for the exit penalty they just made it much easier to leave.

It maybe easier to leave but it makes the schools much less attractive to a new conference. "Atlantic Coast Conference presidents Monday approved the granting of media rights to the league through 2025. Any team that would leave would do so without its TV rights, dramatically reducing its value to other conferences."

As I understand it, the ACC teams are attractive to the B1G's TV network. If the network can't get the games until 2025 that cuts their value. Now, if Notre Dame were to jump to the B1G and include football then it's worth it for competitive reasons regardless of TV. But Notre Dame doesn't appear to want in the B1G. Do you want Duke or UNC without the ability to broadcast their games?

Edit: I haven't been able to find out what happens to any exit fees with the new deal.

Edited April 23, 2013 by VideoEagle

Arkstfan · April 23, 2013

It maybe easier to leave but it makes the schools much less attractive to a new conference. "Atlantic Coast Conference presidents Monday approved the granting of media rights to the league through 2025. Any team that would leave would do so without its TV rights, dramatically reducing its value to other conferences."

As I understand it, the ACC teams are attractive to the B1G's TV network. If the network can't get the games until 2025 that cuts their value. Now, if Notre Dame were to jump to the B1G and include football then it's worth it for competitive reasons regardless of TV. But Notre Dame doesn't appear to want in the B1G. Do you want Duke or UNC without the ability to broadcast their games?

Edit: I haven't been able to find out what happens to any exit fees with the new deal.

Who says they can't broadcast the games?

The ACC entered into a contract with ESPN and said we grant you the license to show all our games through 2027. Then has come back and said, we now have these 15 schools locked into this agreement through 2027.

So ESPN holds the TV rights (of some degree) for all 15 schools through 2027.

They still don't control the road games (in Big 10 that's 4 or 5 per year depending on the schedule) so those games would belong to the new league.

But here is what you have to consider. ABC/ESPN's deal with the Big 10 expires in 2016. Big 10 is tied on lower tier rights with Fox through 2032. Does ABC/ESPN want your local Fox station or Fox Sports 1 or Fox Sports 2 to be able to show Ohio State - Michigan or Nebraska-Iowa and completely lock them out of the most valuable college sports league?

ABC/ESPN has two chips here.

If they can't secure the Big 10 rights past 2016 and the Big 10 wants two ACC schools, ESPN has 12 to 16 Big 10 games every year in football and at least 30 basketball games involving the two ACC raided out teams. Fox gets their 9 or so conference road games and 16 or 18 road games in basketball. ABC/ESPN gets some Big 10 content and it is covered by the existing contract with the ACC so if it is worth more money that's more profit they don't share.

The other option is Big 10 cuts a new ABC/ESPN deal and ABC/ESPN assigns over their right to telecast home games of the two new members to the Big 10 so the games are available for ABC/ESPN or BTN. All ESPN has to do is continue to pay the ACC the contracted amount of the TV deal. Then they pay Big 10 whatever rights fee they agree upon to have their Tier 1 rights. It all cleans up nicely.

Harry · April 23, 2013

Who says they can't broadcast the games?

The ACC entered into a contract with ESPN and said we grant you the license to show all our games through 2027. Then has come back and said, we now have these 15 schools locked into this agreement through 2027.

So ESPN holds the TV rights (of some degree) for all 15 schools through 2027.

They still don't control the road games (in Big 10 that's 4 or 5 per year depending on the schedule) so those games would belong to the new league.

But here is what you have to consider. ABC/ESPN's deal with the Big 10 expires in 2016. Big 10 is tied on lower tier rights with Fox through 2032. Does ABC/ESPN want your local Fox station or Fox Sports 1 or Fox Sports 2 to be able to show Ohio State - Michigan or Nebraska-Iowa and completely lock them out of the most valuable college sports league?

ABC/ESPN has two chips here.

If they can't secure the Big 10 rights past 2016 and the Big 10 wants two ACC schools, ESPN has 12 to 16 Big 10 games every year in football and at least 30 basketball games involving the two ACC raided out teams. Fox gets their 9 or so conference road games and 16 or 18 road games in basketball. ABC/ESPN gets some Big 10 content and it is covered by the existing contract with the ACC so if it is worth more money that's more profit they don't share.

The other option is Big 10 cuts a new ABC/ESPN deal and ABC/ESPN assigns over their right to telecast home games of the two new members to the Big 10 so the games are available for ABC/ESPN or BTN. All ESPN has to do is continue to pay the ACC the contracted amount of the TV deal. Then they pay Big 10 whatever rights fee they agree upon to have their Tier 1 rights. It all cleans up nicely.

Arkstfan has a point. It's a Stephen Hawking type of point that may be above my limited knowledge but I believe it to be a valid point nonetheless.

VideoEagle · April 23, 2013

Who says they can't broadcast the games?

The ACC entered into a contract with ESPN and said we grant you the license to show all our games through 2027. Then has come back and said, we now have these 15 schools locked into this agreement through 2027.

So ESPN holds the TV rights (of some degree) for all 15 schools through 2027.

They still don't control the road games (in Big 10 that's 4 or 5 per year depending on the schedule) so those games would belong to the new league.

But here is what you have to consider. ABC/ESPN's deal with the Big 10 expires in 2016. Big 10 is tied on lower tier rights with Fox through 2032. Does ABC/ESPN want your local Fox station or Fox Sports 1 or Fox Sports 2 to be able to show Ohio State - Michigan or Nebraska-Iowa and completely lock them out of the most valuable college sports league?

ABC/ESPN has two chips here.

If they can't secure the Big 10 rights past 2016 and the Big 10 wants two ACC schools, ESPN has 12 to 16 Big 10 games every year in football and at least 30 basketball games involving the two ACC raided out teams. Fox gets their 9 or so conference road games and 16 or 18 road games in basketball. ABC/ESPN gets some Big 10 content and it is covered by the existing contract with the ACC so if it is worth more money that's more profit they don't share.

The other option is Big 10 cuts a new ABC/ESPN deal and ABC/ESPN assigns over their right to telecast home games of the two new members to the Big 10 so the games are available for ABC/ESPN or BTN. All ESPN has to do is continue to pay the ACC the contracted amount of the TV deal. Then they pay Big 10 whatever rights fee they agree upon to have their Tier 1 rights. It all cleans up nicely.

That all sounds possible in the Byzantine world of college football. The interesting thing is who get paid for broadcasting the games? Duke assigned it's broadcast rights to the ACC to 2025 and the ACC then does a deal with the Mouse to carry the games. Then Duke jumps to the B1G but leaves the TV rights behind. You'd have to check the contract but I would suspect the games between Duke and Michigan carried on ABC/ESPN would be paid to the ACC. Even for the exposure on ESPN, I'm not sure Michigan or Duke would be very happy about that. And Northwestern and the rest of the B1G would be furious.

I guess it all depends on if "exposure" and future NCAA units are worth not getting paid for TV broadcasts. It could work out that way, but I'd be surprised.

Arkstfan · April 23, 2013

That all sounds possible in the Byzantine world of college football. The interesting thing is who get paid for broadcasting the games? Duke assigned it's broadcast rights to the ACC to 2025 and the ACC then does a deal with the Mouse to carry the games. Then Duke jumps to the B1G but leaves the TV rights behind. You'd have to check the contract but I would suspect the games between Duke and Michigan carried on ABC/ESPN would be paid to the ACC. Even for the exposure on ESPN, I'm not sure Michigan or Duke would be very happy about that. And Northwestern and the rest of the B1G would be furious.

I guess it all depends on if "exposure" and future NCAA units are worth not getting paid for TV broadcasts. It could work out that way, but I'd be surprised.

The rights would depend on where the game is played. At Duke the rights belong to the ACC at Michigan to the Big 10.

Remember, they aren't writing checks per game. They are writing checks for the big pot of games. In fact a few years ago ESPN was sued because they had bought a big quantity of rights from an entity and then never showed hardly anything. They just warehoused the rights to keep anyone else from having them.

Let's say Big 10 takes GT and UVA. Realistically, losing those two has a nominal value on the ACC rights. Replace them with UConn and Cincy and ESPN has no heartburn keeping the rights fee where it is (see CUSA expansion).

So all that happens is ESPN writes the same check they were contracted to write (actually its a wire transfer)

But GT and UVA do improve the value of the Big 10 by increasing interest in the Big 10 in the south (and remember Big Ten is in part driven by getting new $1 subscribers and turning 10 cent subscribers into $1. So it can easily be worth Big 10's time to take them.

ESPN wanting a new deal with the Big 10 says give us a contract through 2027 (or some date further down the road) and we will move the GT UVA rights into your package because we already hold those rights through 2027.

Big 10 gets a fat new deal with ESPN

ACC gets all the money they were promised.

Big 10 gains new $1 subscribers.