Who will partner with Pac-12 on next media deal? The CW, Scripps still in play
One of the top sports media reporters in the country still isn't sure who will partner with the Pac-12 on its next TV deal.
On the latest, Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast, New York Post sports media columnist Andrew Marchand broke down the latest he's hearing about networks' interest in the Pac-12.
There isn't much...
"Amazon is unlikely," he said. "CBS is a no. NBC/USA is another no. Fox is a no too. Those are the biggest players. Then you get into Apple, they're a little bit of a wildcard. I've heard certain things, but nothing definitively. I lean towards probably not with them. The Pac-12 has said they do not want to do an all digital deal and it looks like that's Apple's strategy. So that leaves the CW, Scripps and those types of players."
A deal with ESPN could happen, but it wouldn't be a great one for the conference, according to Marchand.
"If the Pac-12 got a deal with ESPN, it would probably be for low money," he said. "I would be very surprised if the Pac-12 got the same amount of money from ESPN as the Big 12."
The Pac-12's current TV deal expires in 2024 and the conference — after months and months of negotiations — is still in the process of trying to land a new one.
The issue is that without USC and UCLA, the Pac-12's TV rights aren't as valuable and the league is struggling to find a new partner (or partners) in the wake of the Big 12 jumping the line and signing a new media deal last October with ESPN and Fox.
Earlier this week, a source told reporter John Canzano that the Pac-12 is confident the conference will beat the Big 12's deal worth $31.7 million per school annually.
Where exactly the money comes from to best the Big 12's number remains to be seen.
