http://big12fanatics.com/news-notes-around-big-12-2/

9. Although rumors have been swirling for months, the Sports Business Journal dropped a bombshell about the Big Ten’s negotiations with Fox, which we should expect to be wrapped up by this summer. I will have an article on it on its own in a week or two, but the most important part of the rumor had to do with it only being six years long, ending right as the Pac 12 and Big 12 contracts end. Many have speculated this means the Big Ten is preparing for an expansion move, but I’ve heard a few things to indicate it may be looking at the college sports media game differently. It is generally assumed that for the Big Ten to gain more markets for its network that it has to expand with schools to join its conference. However, word out of Chicago is that fourteen is already a difficult number to handle and expanding even more threatens to make it worse. Instead there is talk of using the Big Ten Network’s infrastructure to envelop the Big 12 for Texas and possibly the Pac 12 for the West Coast utilizing a common connection through Fox. These would not be conference expansion/mergers, but instead a media expansion/merger, as if the Big Ten Network was the Pac 12 and Big 12’s Tier Three media partner. This would turn the channel from conference centric to college sports centric, much like ESPNU. Games would be mirrored so each areas games played in their local footprint, allow BTN to charge higher rates in more areas, and feature scheduled out of conference games between the partners. While this allows the Big Ten and other conferences to sell more content to broadcasters as well, the ultimate goal would be to contain the SEC. Stay tune

Very interesting idea. It would permit the network to expand but the conference wouldnt have to. The devil is always in the details but it is at bare minimum a solid idea.

I wonder if Fox isnt the driver behind this... Pac 12 isn't working well from a revenue perspective. LHN is an Unmitigated disaster. And the remainder of the Big 12 doesn't have a huge population base. I'm interested to see the details.

Yes, FOX is the driver. There has been talk of a merger between the Pac 12 and the B1G on a TV contract. This takes it to a whole new level since it is only the tier 3 level and not tier 1 and 2 that I mentioned in the first sentence.

By doing this, you get California and Texas at footprint level pricing at the very least.

This can be very big with the additions of ACC properties as expansion schools.

I still see the B1G expanding, but I think this merger stuff is going to become something that is seriously discussed over the coming years and by the time it is to do the next contract, they will be ready to merger this into a national college sports network.

Just throwing crap against the wall but... I think that the Big 12 & PAC 12 would get a similar deal to what we're getting. 51/49 revenue split. Not sure if they'd get an ownership stake but because we do have an ownership stake of 49 we'd earn roughly a quarter of what the PAC and XII earn combined.

I can see how a deal like that benefits us and the Big 12 teams not named Texas. I fail to see how it benefits the PAC. Someone help me out here.

Wait, how could the BTN which is owned by the B1G and Fox merge with the LHN which is owned by ESPN?

Yea not buying this. LHN is owned and operated by ESPN. The Pac-12 Networks are owned and operated by the Pac-12 itself. This is very deep left field stuff in my opinion. Now if you were to tell me that the Pac-12 is going to revamp its network and in the process sell half of its equity to Fox Sports who will now operate it, I'd say that's something I can definitely see. I could even see in that situation that Fox bundles the two channels so that you have to carry both to get both broader coverage nationwide.