Possible ACC Network Long Way Away

Here's the just of the article from SportsBusiness Daily: http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2013/05/20/Media/ACC-n....

The biggest problem so far is a rights issue. ESPN needs to control the conference's syndicated rights to launch a channel. But those rights are tied up until 2027 through deals with Raycom and Fox Sports Net.

"There's no way an ACC network co-exists with a syndicated model," said Chris Bevilacqua, a media consultant who worked with the Pac-12 to form a league network. "They're going to have to get those rights back."

We'll see how this plays out. ACC schools are no doubt hoping this could be an additional source of revenue down the road. If ESPN thinks they can make money on the network with the additional overhead of acquiring the rights, then to me it's a logical decision to do so. Right now ACC schools are getting $18 million a year from ESPN, and if there is no television network SBD reports, "ESPN, if it says no to a channel, would increase its compensation to the ACC, pushing the per-school average to close to $20 million."