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ESPN and Current Big East Conference Agree to Multiyear Rights Agreement


ESPN and the current Big East Conference, soon to be renamed, will continue their relationship of more than three decades with a multiyear, multimedia rights agreement. The agreement grants ESPN exclusive worldwide distribution rights across all media and will continue ESPN’s coverage of the conference’s football, basketball and more through 2019-20. In addition, video subscribers of ESPN will have access to the games via digital and mobile devices.

ESPN’s existing football agreement with the conference runs through 2013 while the 2013-14 season will act as a bridge year for the conference’s basketball rights. Commencing in 2014-15, football, basketball and other sports will be under one agreement through 2019-20 granting ESPN rights to all conference contests (not included in CBS’s basketball rights package) including at least 66 football games and 170 men’s basketball games which will be made available annually across ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, ESPNU, ESPNEWS and ESPN3, and via limited regional and national sublicense. In addition, select women’s basketball regular-season and postseason contests as well as other conference-sponsored sports will be presented throughout the year.

http://espnmediazone.com/us/press-relea ... agreement/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Number 12 coming sooner rather than later



Q: Your TV deal for the new conference is done. So what's next?

Aresco: We have some serious work ahead of us. We must find a good name that works and reflects the new reality of who we are. We have to come up with a good logo and branding that the public will accept. We feel we are going to get great exposure with our new ESPN deal with some Thursday night and Friday night windows. Some of our new schools like SMU, Houston, Memphis, Tulane, and East Carolina have never had this kind of exposure before. Now it is up to us to perform on the field and on the court.

Q: When Navy comes (in 2015) you'll have 11 schools. How quickly will you go to 12?

Aresco: We'll go to 12 sooner rather than later. We didn't want to do it in March and disrupt the focus on the tournament.

Q: Most people believe that conference expansion and realignment are not over. Is it possible that after all this work you could lose more schools down the road?

Aresco: Anything is possible but we believe that if this group of schools can stay together we can be a challenger brand. In football there is the opportunity to land one of the top bowl spots in the new playoff format if our conference finishes first among the Group of Five (Big East, Mountain West, Conference USA, Sun Belt, Mid-American). Cincinnati was No. 3 a few years ago. We think the Florida schools (UCF, USF), can become the brands we want.

Q: But what about basketball?

Aresco: Again, we have a really good core. We have four proven basketball brands in UConn, Cincinnati, Temple and Memphis. We have (coach) Larry Brown at SMU. Houston wants to regain their former glory. I think we are going to be a good basketball league. But right now we have to find a couple of locations to play our men's and women's basketball tournaments.

http://www.cbssports.com/columns/story/ ... defections