We are now one week from Pac-12 media day on Friday, July 21. What, if anything, will emerge on that day? Will we have a new media rights deal in the Pac-12? The deal might not be completely finalized, but the framework might be disclosed to the extent that schools (and the public) will gain crucial information. They might be able to (finally) know how much revenue the conference will gain and then distribute to its 10 members (sans USC and UCLA).
While we wait for media day and the possible revelation of a media rights deal, Pac-12 insiders continue to be very, very confident about the ultimate outcome of the process.
John Canzano, at his Substack, caught up with one member of the Pac-12 CEO Group:
“Earlier this year, Disney announced it would cut more than $3 billion in content costs and announced plans for 7,000 layoffs. Those content cuts, interestingly, do not impact live-sports content.
“Does the industry shift work to the Pac-12’s advantage?
“Is it good/bad for the Pac-12 to hear the CEO of Disney talking about selling equity in ESPN?
“The member of the Pac-12 CEO Group I spoke with on Thursday said it was ‘eventually good.’ That the shift at Disney and other places definitely caused a short-term delay, ‘but will be worth the wait.’”
If all of this confidence is not matched by a deal which hits a satisfactory price point, the public relations blowback could be severe. We will see if this backroom, behind-the-scenes confidence is justified.
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