Monday, July 1, 2013
Page 17
UNIVERSITY
Athletics seals new TV deal with ESPN
NATHAN FORDYCE
nfordyce@kansan.com
One week after the University agreed to a deal with Time Warner Cable and Kansas City's Metro Sports to expand the coverage of the University's athletic programs, they struck another deal with the worldwide leader in sports, ESPN.
The deal with Time Warner finished up the tier three television rights. There are three tiers in television rights. The first are owned by national networks, e.g. ESPN, and they get the first opportunity to pick games for over-the-air broadcasts. The second tier rights are for the unselected games that are appear on cable networks such as Time Warner. The third and final tier rights are to the games remaining, which the school and conference have to air as they see fit.
Having the Jayhawks streamed nationwide is something Jim Marchiony, the University's Assistant Athletic Director of Public Affairs, said will allow the Jayhawks to reach farther than ever before.
"It means hundreds of hours of KU-
themed programming that will be produced and aired in Kansas City and throughout the state of Kansas," Marchiony said. "That programming entails at least 50 sporting events, everything from men's basketball, women's basketball, volleyball, track and field and hundred of hours of KU-themed programming."
Some of the themed programming that will be aired will be pre-game shows, post-game shows and a magazine-type show that will be able to focus on the entire University, not just the athletic side.
The University is the last of the Big 12 members to agree to their tier three rights. Texas has their Longhorn Network, which is ESPN-backed. Baylor, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas Tech have deals with Fox, Iowa State and West Virginia have agreements with local networks in their regions.
Being last to sign to a deal, Marchiony said the University was not rushed to an agreement.
"We think our deal is a terrific arrangement," Marchiony said. "It is near the best anywhere. We were not
in a hurry. We wanted to make sure that what we did, was to the benefit of the entire athletic program and the University as a whole."
The University wasn't finished with signing deals for television rights as they agreed to a seven-year deal with ESPN to broadcast over ESPN3, ESPN's live online streaming network.
Under that agreement, ESPN will carry a minimum of 70 live events each year including one football game, six men's basketball games, as many as 16 women's basketball games, nine volleyball matches, eight baseball games and as many as 12 softball, soccer and track and field events. The deal also includes 20 additional contests that will be seen nationwide.
"ESPN3 continues to serve as a destination for college sports fans, and our agreement with Kansas Athletics extends that commitment," John Lasker, ESPN's vice president of programming and acquisitions, said in a news release. "We look forward to delivering these live events to the KU fan base."
Edited by Megan Hinman
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Senior guard Travis Telefon dunks the ball during a game this past season. More people will be able to watch men's basketball games, and many other KU athletic events, with the University's new television deals.