(01-24-2018 01:19 PM)Wedge Wrote:  

(01-24-2018 11:34 AM)JRsec Wrote:  The more we move toward pay models based on actual viewers and away from subscription based pay models the greater the variance will be for the PAC and ACC over what the variance will be for the SEC or Big 10.

Given the Big 10 will pay out next year 51.1 million as published by Wisconsin and that Missouri just reported that their share of the SEC TV revenue this year will be 46.4 million, the indications are the networks still find value in the Big 10 and SEC, and that really has nothing to do with whether either is the recent champion.

When televised sports transitions to a model where the revenue comes only from those who choose to subscribe (or pay per game), and leaves behind the model where the network or conference gets money from every home with a cable box, then all of this could be quite different.

Right now there is a lot of potential data that is hidden because the TV packages are lumped together for all teams in a conference and for both football and basketball. Once that's all separated out and everyone can see who is willing to pay to watch each individual team and each sport, we will learn a lot of interesting things.

One thing that I've mentioned before is that the model in which each conference member gets an equal share of media revenue might fall apart. If the average Ohio State or Michigan football game is purchased several hundred thousand times but any Indiana, Rutgers, or Minnesota football game not featuring a marquee opponent is only purchased several hundred times, then Ohio State and Michigan might demand a much larger share, especially if costs continue to escalate and Meyer or Harbaugh or the next superstar head coach is making $20 million/year plus another $20 million/year to pay the rest of their coaching staff.

We can easily imagine any of the "king" programs saying, "We're not going to sign any more grants of media rights to the conference unless the top earners get a percentage that is proportionate to the value they contribute."

In a subscriber model, the basketball schools probably increase in relative value. Kentucky had one of the highest Tier 3 values in the SEC before the formation of the SECN. Football will still draw better ratings, but either one can drive subscriber fees.