http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs....70375/1037

ESPNU will not televise any WAC games this fall after negotiations between ESPN and the conference ended without an agreement, WAC commissioner Karl Benson said Wednesday.

ESPN, which has an agreement with the WAC, wanted to use the league to stock ESPNU, its fledgling network devoted to college athletics. But the WAC balked at handing over games without additional rights fee.

"We've had discussions with ESPN about ESPNU, about providing programming for ESPNU, but have been unsuccessful in reaching an agreement that would provide additional rights fees," Benson said.

"And our member institutions believe if we're going to provide programming for ESPNU, there should be some compensation," Benson said.

Benson said the discussions have ended and the league does not expect any games to be aired this season on ESPNU.

"We will continue our discussions after the first of the year," he said.

The WAC signed a six-year contract valued at $1 million per year with ESPN in 2004. The deal tripled the league's TV revenue from its previous contract, but is well short of the Mountain West's seven-year, $48 million deal.

BSU has four games scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN or ESPN2 this season

[quote="ejmpalle"]http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs....70375/1037

ESPNU will not televise any WAC games this fall after negotiations between ESPN and the conference ended without an agreement, WAC commissioner Karl Benson said Wednesday.

ESPN, which has an agreement with the WAC, wanted to use the league to stock ESPNU, its fledgling network devoted to college athletics. But the WAC balked at handing over games without additional rights fee.

"We've had discussions with ESPN about ESPNU, about providing programming for ESPNU, but have been unsuccessful in reaching an agreement that would provide additional rights fees," Benson said.

"And our member institutions believe if we're going to provide programming for ESPNU, there should be some compensation," Benson said.

Benson said the discussions have ended and the league does not expect any games to be aired this season on ESPNU.

"We will continue our discussions after the first of the year," he said.

The WAC signed a six-year contract valued at $1 million per year with ESPN in 2004. The deal tripled the league's TV revenue from its previous contract, but is well short of the Mountain West's seven-year, $48 million deal.

BSU has four games scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN or ESPN2 this season

[quote="billings"][quote="ejmpalle"]http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs....70375/1037

ESPNU will not televise any WAC games this fall after negotiations between ESPN and the conference ended without an agreement, WAC commissioner Karl Benson said Wednesday.

ESPN, which has an agreement with the WAC, wanted to use the league to stock ESPNU, its fledgling network devoted to college athletics. But the WAC balked at handing over games without additional rights fee.

"We've had discussions with ESPN about ESPNU, about providing programming for ESPNU, but have been unsuccessful in reaching an agreement that would provide additional rights fees," Benson said.

"And our member institutions believe if we're going to provide programming for ESPNU, there should be some compensation," Benson said.

Benson said the discussions have ended and the league does not expect any games to be aired this season on ESPNU.

"We will continue our discussions after the first of the year," he said.

The WAC signed a six-year contract valued at $1 million per year with ESPN in 2004. The deal tripled the league's TV revenue from its previous contract, but is well short of the Mountain West's seven-year, $48 million deal.

BSU has four games scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN or ESPN2 this season

Yoda Wrote:OLN is out. Our agreement with ESPN allows them exclusive national access. We can appear regionally (defined as in any WAC state and in any state that immediately adjoins a WAC state) so we could be on the mtn. However, we have no interest in doing anything that helps the scum-sucking MWC make its network successful.

If one conference gets $80MM and another gets $6MM, which one would you think is "sucking scum"? Hmm?

Unless you're talking morality (and as a fan of probation-laden Fresno State, that possibility is automatically ruled out). Besides which, MWC schools are Heroes for putting the WAC-16 experiment out of its misery.

eldermars Wrote:If one conference gets $80MM and another gets $6MM, which one would you think is "sucking scum"? Hmm?

Unless you're talking morality (and as a fan of probation-laden Fresno State, that possibility is automatically ruled out). Besides which, MWC schools are Heroes for putting the WAC-16 experiment out of its misery. [/color]

Keep your money. It isn't worth the false sense of superiority that has infected a lot of MWC fans.
As for morality, Fresno's problems are history. I may not know much about their Basketball Coach but I have no complaint about their players or their play. Pat Hill runs clean and very competitive program. By your standard we should hammer BYU for their recent football player scandal and keep hammering for the next decade or two.

Fresno State is still on probation.

BYU has NEVER been put on probation in ANY sport.

Good for the WAC in not accepting a deal which offered no additional monies for the conference.

Exposure is one thing on ESPN/ESPN2. But, little exposure on ESPNU is quite another.

ESPNU has huge up-side...but if they want D-1A penetration out west...they have no other option but the WAC. No other.

we'll see how they feel about expanding out west next year.

Back to the topic of TV deals, the Boise State-Utah game will be televised nationally on OLN (The Outdoor Life Network, soon to become "Versus"). That is the channel that carries all NHL hockey and recently the Tour de France, as you might recall.

http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/school...WCFBTVSched.pdf

OLN/"Versus" Games:

Sat. 9/16 Texas Tech at TCU
Thurs. 9/28 BYU at TCU
*Sat. 9/30 Boise State at Utah
Thurs. 10/5 TCU at Utah
Sat. 10/28 BYU at Air Force
Sat. 11/4 TCU at UNLV
Sat. 11/11 Colorado State at Utah
Sat. 11/18 San Diego State at TCU

They may have to change their name to "The TCU Network!"

Every MWC team has at least one game featured but Wyoming and New Mexico.

BYU has 2 games features, against TCU and Air Force. The BYU/Utah game will remain on CSTV.

eldermars Wrote:[color=blue]
Back to the topic of TV deals, the Boise State-Utah game will be televised nationally on OLN (The Outdoor Life Network, soon to become "Versus").

Great news since the mtn isn't available in Idaho. Now if they would only fix the BSU/Wyoming lack of broadcast.

Where this could hurt the WAC is getting games on ESPN Game Plan. While I feel ESPN is going to need some games to fill out the schedule each week, ESPN can be a vengeful beast as they dumped on the MWC when it came to showing their games in Game Plan and Full Court the last year, not showing some games or purposely scheduling so that some MWC games were cut into at a later time. The WAC and its schools can offer games to ESPN for Game Plan, and ESPN can simply say no thanks.

While this isn't what is happening to the WAC, and I completely agree with Benson's stance that the conference should be compensated, ESPN won't forget this.

n/m

ESPN's position is that their contract already allows them to put WAC games on ESPNU. The WAC's position is that it doesn't. There was negotiation over that point -- with the WAC offering to extend the contract and include ESPNU. We wanted an offer that was substantially more than we are getting now, however, along the lines of what ESPN was offering the MWC. ESPN wanted to continue screwing us and the President's voted it down.

I believe that Benson still expects ESPN to purchase individual games for ESPNU.

Yoda out...

True Mattsarz. But this does send a message to ESPN that we "know" that we're the "only" game in town if ESPNU wants a D-1a presents out west. We know they have "no" other options...

...and we know that they "only" have the Pac-10 for six games starting in 2007.

...and we know that we have other networks that we can take our product to if ESPN is content with showing just six D-1a west coast games a year on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNC and ESPNU.

...and we know that "none" of those six Pac-10 games can be shown on ESPNC or ESPNU....so...

...the WAC has finally put the stop sign up to ESPN.

If ESPN doesn't deal with the WAC as a valued partner, their "Worldwide Leader in Sports" title will have to change to: "Worldwide Leader in Sports...Minus the Western Region of the United States...but we will show Six Pac-10 Games".

ESPN was able to throw the MWC out with the bath water....because they knew the WAC was there to happily pick up the slack. Who picks up the slack out west if the WAC leaves? ESPN just doesn't have a whole lot of options left.

...and we know it. ...and they know it.

This was a very good move by the WAC.

Yoda Wrote:ESPN's position is that their contract already allows them to put WAC games on ESPNU. The WAC's position is that it doesn't. There was negotiation over that point -- with the WAC offering to extend the contract and include ESPNU. We wanted an offer that was substantially more than we are getting now, however, along the lines of what ESPN was offering the MWC. ESPN wanted to continue screwing us and the President's voted it down.

And that's precisely why the MWC cut its ties with ESPN and went with CSTV, speaking of your last sentence. ESPN's umbillical chord was starting to feel more and more like a noose around the conference's neck. Congrats to the WAC for recognizing that fact (albeit a bit belatedly, IMO, though better late than never). Standing up to ESPN's 800 gorilla can be a bit intimidating at first. However, once you do, you send a signal that you're not going to merely sit back and take whatever crumbs ESPN's plantation culture deigns to dish out.

jediwarrior Wrote:...the WAC has finally put the stop sign up to ESPN.

Indeed you have; well done. It's also very liberating so I'm pulling for you to get something better.

Wouldn't it be ironic if the WAC signed a regional contract with CSTV/mtn and got more from that than it does from ESPN's national contract?

The WAC needs to become more competitive in football to demand more from ESPN. The only fans that give a damn about WAC football are found in Honolulu, Fresno, Boise and.... that is about it. Really, what can we demand when only 3 markets are interested? We can't settle for CSTV/MTN, because that would ignore the potential of the teams in our conference that haven't developed a large fan base in football yet (Nevada, Utah St, NMSU, etc).

If we can get the other teams in this conference besides Boise St, Fresno St and Hawaii to get a decent following based on their OOC success and success in conference, then we'll have some bargaining power, because we'll be able to put just about any team on the field with the PAC 10 and beat them.

The only thing that bothers me about ESPN right now is that our basketball prowess deserves a LOT of attention. Hopefully Karl Benson will get that straightened out later before basketball season gets really moving.

SPCoug - It does feel pretty good.

I think the WAC has turned the corner...just by saying "no". ESPNU knows Karl's number if they decide they want to expand West.

Still waiting to find out what the deal is with "Regional" coverage. Karl?

I'm glad that they didn't settle for nothing--but at the same time--IT'S RIDICULOUS THAT WE STILL DON'T HAVE ANY REGIONAL TV DEAL!!

You told ESPN to stick it, but we still need to have something. At this point, I'm willing to sign with the Mtn. if it's that or nothing.

WAC_FAN Wrote:I'm glad that they didn't settle for nothing--but at the same time--IT'S RIDICULOUS THAT WE STILL DON'T HAVE ANY REGIONAL TV DEAL!!

You told ESPN to stick it, but we still need to have something. At this point, I'm willing to sign with the Mtn. if it's that or nothing.

Agree. There are many MWC fans in Boise, Fresno, Hawaii, Reno, San Jose... and MWC-vs-WAC games can be seen on TV in the MWC/WAC fanbases. Let's make them "No ESPN Country on MWC-vs-WAC Games".

jediwarrior Wrote:ESPN was able to throw the MWC out with the bath water... because they knew the WAC was there to happily pick up the slack.

LOL! This sounds just like C-USA fans claiming that the Liberty bowl dumped the MWC. It's comparable to Fresno State or Hawaii fans stating that they kicked the Gang of Five out of the WAC.

The sad thing is, nobody corrected him.

Oh, and the WAC doesn't have the choice to sign any sort of deal with THE MOUNTAINWEST SPORTS NETWORK. It's only for the MWC. If you want your own network, start one. Or support the one you already have, WACtv, which is only shown online. http://www.wac.tv/

This sounds just like C-USA fans claiming that the Liberty bowl dumped the MWC.


that is what happened.