$ 14 MILLION?

[whaler11]

The NBA has been promoting the WNBA for over a decade. Promotion does not equal success, it only equals promotion.

NBC promotes plenty of stuff today. Some of it is successful and some (most) of it isn't.

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/20...ip-through-week-36-ending-may-27-2012/136000/

In NBC's core function.. you know being a TV network, they are fourth out of four.

 

[CL82]

The NBA has been promoting the WNBA for over a decade. Not sure how this is relevant, but um, okay

Promotion does not equal success, it only equals promotion. True but promotion is greater than no promotion and it certainly greater than actively sabotaging.

NBC promotes plenty of stuff today. Some of it is successful and some (most) of it isn't. um, okay

In NBC's core function.. you know being a TV network, they are fourth out of four. um, okay. Just curious, how does NBCs total viewership compare to cable broadcasters?

So the question remains, all things being equal, does it make more sense to go to a major network who has a mutual interest in successful college sports program or stay with a cable company who has actively tried to sabotage us at every turn. Again, not a hard question, from my perspective. It becomes somewhat easier when you consider that the one who isn't instructing other leagues to poach our teams is apparently willing to pay us substantially more money.

 

[CTMike]

Big fish in a small pond, versus small fish in a big pond... no real right answer.

 

[UConnDan97]

Big East Basketball is destination television. Being on NBC won't hurt us in the least. Cross promotion on the network will be a net plus in brand recognition for us particularly for football. The Big East wasn't well promoted on ESPN. That's not going to change on that network. They are too invested in it.

This. 1000x this. If there is anybody on this thread that believes that the likes of UConn, Ville, GTown, ND, Marquette, Nova, Cincy, Temple, Memphis, and the Johnnies are going to be marginalized in the national basketball debate, even though we are unarguably one of the top three conferences in the nation (and arguably higher), you're out of your minds. If you think they are going to be marginalized by getting some of their games on one of the "big 3" basic channels, you're REALLY out of your minds...

 

[zls44]

I love the folks who think ESPN is out to destroy the Big East.

Every fan, analyst, columnist, radio host etc. outside the conference and outside of ESPN thinks it's a joke. A total joke. But yeah, it's ESPN that killed it...not the fact that these are commuter schools with minimal football histories, small stadiums, small footprints and NOTHING in common. The country should stand up and respect the greatness of Memphis-Houston. That'll surely turn NBC around! I guess the good thing is that their horrific internet video "service" won't have to worry about more than 200 people trying to watch this crap.

If NBC wants to pay the Big East $14 million, the Big East should absolutely take the money and run. But it's also the typical stupid type of buy by NBC that continues to ensure their ongoing irrelevance in the sports landscape.

 

[Dann]

 

[UConnDan97]

I love the folks who think ESPN is out to destroy the Big East.

Good. It means you love me. You really love me!

http://www.thebiglead.com/index.php...expansion-and-his-school-blocked-connecticut/

It's amazing how many times people on the Boneyard have to have a story re-hashed and re-linked for them as if they don't have the ability to absorb a story for themselves the first time around.

Oh, by the way, which media outlet was the one driving home the term "Big 5 conferences" for multiple months, only to stop in the past two weeks to go back to the original term of "Big 6", surprisingly close to the period where they are to begin a 60-day exclusive negotiation with the Big East? Oh yeah, now I remember which media outlet it was...

http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-col...best-2012-13-non-big-six-conference-teams-ncb

Look, people; business is business. There are no friends when money is on the line. ESPN is looking out for ESPN. But to talk as if they have not tried to lower the value of the Big East (either to prevent other suitors, to prop up their ACC portfolio, or to lower their next bid) is just asinine, so wake up.

 

[Santini35]

Remember Zls works for espn...

 

[CL82]

I love the folks who think ESPN is out to destroy the Big East.

Every fan, analyst, columnist, radio host etc. outside the conference and outside of ESPN thinks it's a joke. A total joke. But yeah, it's ESPN that killed it...not the fact that these are commuter schools with minimal football histories, small stadiums, small footprints and NOTHING in common. The country should stand up and respect the greatness of Memphis-Houston. That'll surely turn NBC around! I guess the good thing is that their horrific internet video "service" won't have to worry about more than 200 people trying to watch this crap.

If NBC wants to pay the Big East $14 million, the Big East should absolutely take the money and run. But it's also the typical stupid type of buy by NBC that continues to ensure their ongoing irrelevance in the sports landscape.

So...yea for us!

 

[CL82]

Remember Zls works for espn...

That would explain the scent of fear.

 

[metsfan2323]

I love the folks who think ESPN is out to destroy the Big East.

Every fan,(wrong) analyst,(wrong) columnist,(wrong) radio host etc. outside the conference and outside of ESPN thinks it's a joke (wrong, many think the new Big East is better then the old Big East and they are right, it's much better). A total joke. But yeah, it's ESPN that killed it...not the fact that these are commuter schools (all schools have some commuters, and who really cares) with minimal football histories (most of these schools have a much longer history then UCONN), small stadiums (wrong most are bigger then the Rent or just as big), small footprints and NOTHING in common (schools that play football). The country should stand up and respect the greatness of Memphis-Houston (Houston actually is going to be great, much better then Cuse or Pitt). That'll surely turn NBC around! (who cares about turning NBC around, this is a UCONN football forum not an NBC stockholders forum) I guess the good thing is that their horrific internet video "service" won't have to worry about more than 200 people trying to watch this crap. (serving crap is something you specialize in)

 

[BlueMAB]

ESPN didn't kill the Big East, they told the ACC how to. If your friend tells you to punch someone in the face, and you do it, you get charged with assault, not your friend.

The ACC had two willing partners in Fruit U and sPitt. They killed the Big East (and UConn would have done the same if invited). Had Fruit U and sPitt (and UConn if invited) said "no thanks" the league would likely still be together (but also still unstable). The league put itself in the situation its in by focusing on basketball at the expense of football, stability, and ultimately, lots of money.

The conference may still get a boatload of cash, but that's because NBC is known for throwing money away at sports. If the ratings don't support the investment, the money will fade and the conference will suffer.

 

[uconnbill]

And you'll be ignored by the entity that drives the national conversation. Also, it's a huge giant immense step back on the basketball side.

ESPN drives the conversation nationally. Think it bothers you now? Wait until they are bashing Big East basketball as well.

So you prefer being the ugly step sister on ESPN brand of networks then being on NBC networks? I prefer NBC as ESPN has done nothing but make the Big East a MAC like conference whenever they talk. So I say screw ESPN.

 

[huskymedic]

Posted today by Mengus22.. Part re-hash of NY Daily News Weiss comments w/ some other thoughts.

http://www.bigeastcoastbias.com/2012/8/4/3220424/big-east-television-contract-nbc-espn-expansion

Report: NBC Could Offer Big East Football Teams $10 Million, Full Members $14 Million Per Year

Several tasks remain for the Big East to complete as it heads toward the post-BCS, playoff world in 2014. The conference needs to settle its bowl situation, it needs a commissioner, but more important than either of those is the need to nail down a competitive television contract. While nobody expects the Big East to be able to land a deal as lucrative as even the ACC television contract (the smallest of the current major conference deals), it's imperative that the new Big East television contract at least keep Big East football programs in the same ballpark as the other five major conferences. If a report from Dick Weiss turns out to be true, Big East football members will have not only a respectable television contract, but one that will be close to the other major conferences and put significant distance between it and the Mountain West, MAC, Sun Belt, and Conference USA.

According to Weiss, the Big East could be looking at a television deal that pays football playing members $10 million per year and an additional $4 million for the conference's basketball rights as well. Weiss writes:

ESPN has an exclusive 60-day negotiating window with the league, starting Sept. 1. If no deal is reached by Nov. 1, the league make itself available to other bidders. In May 2011 the Big East turned down a deal with ESPN that reportedly would have paid between $11 and $13 million a team. The current deal is worth $4 million to each of the football schools.

Sources suggest that if NBC, which is desperate for sports inventory, signs a TV contract with the conference, it would be willing to pay the Big East football teams $10 milllion apiece and throw in an additional $4 million for the 16 basketball schools. One of the network’s ideas may be to run a full day of Big East football, along with Notre Dame home games, from noon to midnight Saturdays on either NBC or its still-growing cable channel.

For full members of the conference to end up, after all of the upheaval, with a television deal that pays them $14 million per year would be a tremendous boost to the league. That figure would put the conference within earshot of the ACC's new deal that will average $17 million per year. To get that kind of money would be a significant boost to each of the 13 Big East football schools. Additionally, the Big East would possibly draft off of Notre Dame on Saturdays by having nationally televised games sandwiched around the broadcast of Irish games as well. The rest would likely be shown on the NBC Sports Network.

Perhaps the biggest benefit of a new deal with NBC would be that the Big East would be on a television network that is interested in its success. Opinions on ESPN's role in the current state of the Big East differ, but it would be difficult for anyone to argue that the network has done much to damage and very little to help the league's image in the past two seasons. A fresh start, with a new network, one that appears willing to invest in it, could be just what the conference needs. Will the Big East eventually become the SEC or Big Ten? No. But with a contract that's at least in the ballpark, increased exposure on NBC and its expanding NBC Sports Network, and the possibility of launching a bowl game of its own for the conference champion, the Big East brass is at least giving fans a sign that they're working to make the conference competitive for the future.

 

[UConnDan97]

ESPN didn't kill the Big East, they told the ACC how to. If your friend tells you to punch someone in the face, and you do it, you get charged with assault, not your friend.

Poor analogy. Try this one to see if it fits better: your business partner tells your competitor how to punch you in the face, and then your competitor punches you in the face.

So........keep the business partner???

 

[UConnDan97]

To be fair, I realize that it is still a possibility that the Big East stays with ESPN. If they do, it will be because ESPN provides either the best bid or the perceived best service to the league. If they offer the best bid, so be it; I can walk away from that with my head held high, knowing that UConn got all that it could. However, if NBC offers the better bid, I will feel a $#it-load better about it.

 

[whaler11]

So you prefer being the ugly step sister on ESPN brand of networks then being on NBC networks? I prefer NBC as ESPN has done nothing but make the Big East a MAC like conference whenever they talk. So I say screw ESPN.

I actually prefer to know all the facts and make a decision based on them instead of being emotional about it.

 

[whaler11]

Can we at least agree that ESPN has bashed Big East football and can't possibly be more supportive of Big East basketball. Does anyone think ESPN has done anything but build basketball up?

 

[UConnDan97]

Can we at least agree that ESPN has bashed Big East football and can't possibly be more supportive of Big East basketball. Does anyone think ESPN has done anything but build basketball up?

I actually think that they have done a good job of promoting the basketball product, but I would add that they have done a better job of promoting a lesser ACC basketball product up at the same time (just ask Dickie V). The only guy that seems to be impartial to that ACC prop job is the guy who went to Duke, ironically (Bilas).

However, it's hard to say they did a great job of promoting Big East basketball, since they were a big part of why Syracuse is no longer here.

 

[whaler11]

I actually think that they have done a good job of promoting the basketball product, but I would add that they have done a better job of promoting a lesser ACC basketball product up at the same time (just ask Dickie V). The only guy that seems to be impartial to that ACC prop job is the guy who went to Duke, ironically (Bilas).

However, it's hard to say they did a great job of promoting Big East basketball, since they were a big part of why Syracuse is no longer here.

They prop up ACC basketball but when the conversations about what is the best basketball conference was on table their talking heads correctly fell on the Big East side generally.

I don't know how much they had to do with Syracuse leaving but that seems to be a separate issue for me.

 

[UConnDan97]

I don't know how much they had to do with Syracuse leaving but that seems to be a separate issue for me.

How could it be a separate issue? We were both business partners with ESPN, and ESPN helped to negotiate a raid of one business partner to aid the other and to enhance their own position. How can you separate that from saying that they "can't possibly be more supportive of Big East basketball"?

 

[Jimdish255]

Poor analogy. Try this one to see if it fits better: your business partner tells your competitor how to punch you in the face, and then your competitor punches you in the face.

So........keep the business partner???

Try this: Your best friend who happens to be a lawyer tells you to trust your wife and buy her some nice jewelry for your anniversary. In the meantime he's banging your wife and drawing up the divorce papers.

 

[whaler11]

How could it be a separate issue? We were both business partners with ESPN, and ESPN helped to negotiate a raid of one business partner to aid the other and to enhance their own position. How can you separate that from saying that they "can't possibly be more supportive of Big East basketball"?

What they may have done with Syracuse and Pitt is separate from what their talent said on the air over the past few years.

I don't know what they did to influence those two schools. I know what they said on air. It is hard to compare what I saw versus what people infer.

 

[RedSoloCup]

ESPN is losing dominance as the only national sport broadcast. When I look at them, they have primarily become a talking head station, and have pushed college schedules and programming around to fill their space. On the web, Yahoo sports is catching up in readership, and you can see that major names that used to fill ESPN pages are elsewhere and putting out a ton of content (Forde). The dominance is in question and good solid efforts by other media entities are going after a piece of the sports pie.

So if NBC is making a play to put our content out, the full conference will have 5-7 games plus ND to place on air in a given week. this means thursday/friday evenings on the sports network, 1-2 on the national broadcast with ND, and a full saturday broadcasting to all time zones. They will need to get studios full of national names and some commentators that point to OOC schedule and records and generate interest in the upcoming week. I expect that they will need to also chase innovation on the broadcast to differentiate and entice game viewers away from ESPN.

For NBC, this becomes attractive because they can tie content and market share. The ifs come into play when discussing regional presentation, sharing network broadcast regionally with the sports network (a la ABC/ESPN).

The BE also needs to be a good partner. We are coming with the national market, but also need to come to the table with a solid OOC. Finally, we need to win all our OOC games. As a conference, I hope that we win 85%, splitting with B1G, Big 12, and winning the occasional SEC. Win all others. We also need to make the investment that we will allow them to broadcast some of the big OOC games, maybe one per year, per two years. Then they get to cross pollinate SEC games or B1G to get eyes on sets. Partnership, collaboration, something we don't get now from ESPN.

I tell you what, it's easy-cheesy!

 

[UConnDan97]

I don't know what they did to influence those two schools. I know what they said on air. It is hard to compare what I saw versus what people infer.

Not inferred. Told.

http://www.thebiglead.com/index.php...expansion-and-his-school-blocked-connecticut/

Apparently, ZLS wasn't the only one out there that doesn't know about this year-old story that has been hashed out ad infinitum (or perhaps even ad nauseum) on the Boneyard. But certainly not inferred...