MEAC and SWAC Schools Sign Unprecedented Media Deal

[*****]

MEAC and SWAC Schools Sign Unprecedented Media Deal (http://www.i-aa.org/article.asp?articleid=69513)

... The agreement, created through the exclusive marketing and television agency of the MEAC, SWAC and SIAC schools, New Vision Sports Properties, gives CSTV exclusive rights to televise regular season and championship football, men’s and women’s basketball and all other men’s and women’s sports from these conferences, and also includes all broadband, high-definition, Internet, video-on-demand, and terrestrial and satellite radio rights.

The cornerstone of the relationship will be an expansion of CSTV’s pre-existing football agreement with the SWAC and will result in the creation of an annual Football Classic Series premiering on CSTV this fall featuring some of the most storied and most intense rivalries in all of college football. CSTV’s Football Classic Series will be a national showcase not only for the actual games on Saturday, but also for the entire weekend experience unique to historically Black universities and colleges.

CSTV’s Football Classic Series Schedule (more games will be added this spring)
Sat., Sept. 24: Atlanta Football Classic, Florida A&M vs. Tennessee State – 4:00 PM ET
Sat., Oct. 1: Gulf Coast Classic, Alabama St. vs. Southern – 4:00 PM ET
Sat., Oct. 15: Big Easy Classic, Southern vs. Jackson State – 8:30 PM ET
Sat., Nov. 19: Capital City Classic, Jackson State vs. Alcorn State – TBD
...
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Excellent news and a bigtime deal!
:hurray: :hyped: xprost2x :hyped: :hurray:

[Retro]

I thought they were going to show every Southern home game! :rolleyes:

It's a good deal, but as we talk about all the time... What about the rest of I-AA? :bang:

Does CSTV and ESPNU have no clue about where the top quality of I-AA football is or is this just an attempt to lure in that particular demographic group? This move is good and bad.. It's good exposure for those schools, but it's bad for the reputation of I-AA as these teams don't (for the most part) participate in the playoff's and usually get knocked out 1st round if they do. Therefore the public isn't going to see the best of I-AA on a regular basis.. A few good teams, yes! I wish these networks would look at the whole picture and put together a whole package for all of I-AA and not just the just these isolated conferences. :rolleyes:

[*****]

... It's a good deal, but as we talk about all the time... What about the rest of I-AA? ...The rest of I-AA is on CSTV eight weeks a season already, this could mean much more.

I pulled this thread once for this reason:
First the SWAC and now the MEAC are denying reports that it has signed an exclusive multi-media and marketing deal with College Sports Television (CSTV). MEAC Commissioner Dennis E. Thomas stated that the information released by CSTV and New Vision Sports Properties was not accurate and that the company has no basis for broadcasting MEAC athletic events.

CSTV unequivocally backs the deal's validity. This is not good. :(

[*****]

The dispute continues: :eek: :eek: :eek:

“It’s unfortunate that CSTV release this inaccurate information regarding the MEAC,” stated Commissioner Thomas. “Furthermore, the MEAC has not given any agency or organization the authority to sign over its Television Rights to anyone. I hope that this release brings clarity and closure to the aforementioned.”

The MEAC and ESPNU, a new division of ESPN dedicated to college sports, signed a seven-year agreement in February 2005 for coverage of multiple sports, including women’s basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, and Track and Field. The deal also provides cable exclusives for football and men’s basketball.

[Retro]

Ralph, I just hope that CSTV doesn't cut back on other I-AA games because of this and their recent deals with other I-A conferences.. That's my concern overall. Of course, now with ESPNU available it does open more outlets, so maybe they will pickup the slack..

Regarding the validity of the deal, it appears that either the meac/swac signed an exclusive deal that they didn't realize was exclusive or there is a serious information/communication problem among these schools/conferences about what they have agreed on! :spank:

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Wasn't there issues with other MEAC schools concerning broadcast rights to some of their games? Didn't FAMU pull out of a big-money classic matchup last year over broadcast rights as well? Wonder if it's the same cast of characters?

Entering the I-AA TV debate, I think many of the higher-ups seem to think of I-AA as this oddity that only a few local folks and alumni want to watch, unless there's some sort of larger demographic at play (HBCUs, Ivies, traditional matchups like Lehigh/Lafayette). All of them, including CSTV unfortunately, have been slow to catch on that I-AA fans are national, follow teams nationally and are willing to watch competitive I-AA teams on a national stage. That's why Harvard/Yale, Grambling/Southern and other "classic" matchups get a lot more broadcast interest than (say) Lehigh/Delaware, which would have more meaning in the national I-AA rankings and more interest from a national I-AA fan rather than targeting a certain demographic.

It also looks like ESPNU and CSTV are more than willing to split the TV pot for the time being, which is good for I-AA too - more money for more games being broadcast. Maybe later it will evolve into more of a bloodsport, but for now it seems like they've divided the turf and are more than happy with what they've got.

Basically, it's all good -- any good I-AA football on TV will help all of I-AA, as long as CSTV/ESPNU and the MEAC get this straight. Hopefully *someone* can get the MEAC folks straight. I feel bad for their fans. I'd be angry if I'd ordered CSTV just to find out all my favorite teams' games are on ESPNU...

[*****]

Wasn't there issues with other MEAC schools concerning broadcast rights to some of their games? ... Entering the I-AA TV debate, I think many of the higher-ups seem to think of I-AA as this oddity that only a few local folks and alumni want to watch, unless there's some sort of larger demographic at play (HBCUs, Ivies, traditional matchups like Lehigh/Lafayette). All of them, including CSTV unfortunately, have been slow to catch on that I-AA fans are national, follow teams nationally and are willing to watch competitive I-AA teams on a national stage. ... I'd be angry if I'd ordered CSTV just to find out all my favorite teams' games are on ESPNU...Yes, there were issues with TV last year with the MEAC and SWAC. As for the TV debate, CSTV has delivered top I-AA national games at least eight times a year the past two years... ESPN has broadcast select playoff games on their secondary channels. CSTV and ESPNU this year are on DirecTV channels 609 and 610. CSTV has done I-AA right and the jury is still out on any others because they haven't done much/any yet.

The 2004 CSTV College Football Schedule (all times ET):
Sat., Sept. 18 The Ohio Classic: Grambling vs. Bethune-Cookman 1:00 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 18 Lafayette @ Princeton 7:00 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 25 Delaware @ Massachusetts 2:00 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 2 Northern Iowa @ Southern Illinois 2:30 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 2 Maine @ Delaware 6:00 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 9 Idaho State @ Montana 3:00 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 16 McNeese State @ Northwestern State 5:00 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 23 Wofford @ Appalachian State 3:00 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 30 Colgate @ Lehigh 1:00 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 6 Penn @ Princeton 1:00 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 13 Furman @ Wofford 1:00 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 20 Lehigh @ Lafayette 5:00 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 20 Montana State @ Montana 8:30 p.m.

CSTV 2003 Football Games of the Week (all times ET)
Saturday, Aug. 30 6 p.m. Montana at Maine
Saturday, Sept. 6 3:30 p.m. Appalachian State at Eastern Kentucky
Saturday, Sept. 13 1 p.m. Fordham at Lehigh
Saturday, Sept. 20 8 p.m. Eastern Kentucky at Western Kentucky
Saturday, Sept. 27 12:30 p.m. Delaware at Hofstra
Saturday, Oct. 4 3:30 p.m. Western Kentucky at Western Illinois
Saturday., Oct. 11 3:30 p.m. Idaho State at Montana State
Saturday, Oct. 25 2:30 p.m. Portland State at Montana
Saturday, Nov. 1 12:30 p.m. Northeastern at Massachusetts
Saturday, Nov. 8 1 p.m. Furman at Georgia Southern
Saturday, Nov. 15 8 p.m. Northwestern State at McNeese State
Saturday, Nov. 22 7 p.m. McNeese State at Nicholls State

[89Hen]

@ Princeton
@ Massachusetts
@ Southern Illinois
@ Delaware
@ Montana
@ Northwestern State
@ Appalachian State
@ Lehigh
@ Princeton
@ Wofford
@ Lafayette
@ Montana
at Maine
at Eastern Kentucky
at Western Kentucky
at Hofstra
at Western Illinois
at Montana State
at Montana
at Massachusetts
at Georgia Southern
at McNeese State
at Nicholls State

They've got to do a better job this year with selection IMO. I know they want to show good games, but there HAS to be some consideration from WHERE they show games too. At Montana three times in two years.... good. At Delaware, GSU, AppSt, McNeese only once and never at UNI... bad. GSU has only been in ONE CSTV game in two years?! They show UD AT Hofstra on astroturf in front of 4,000?! I know it's tough to pick one game per week, but you they have to show I-AA football in some of the better I-AA locations. :twocents:

[*****]

Update: This is a done deal so plan on some HBCU-watching this fall! :)

[Retro]

They've got to do a better job this year with selection IMO. I know they want to show good games, but there HAS to be some consideration from WHERE they show games too. At Montana three times in two years.... good. At Delaware, GSU, AppSt, McNeese only once and never at UNI... bad. GSU has only been in ONE CSTV game in two years?! They show UD AT Hofstra on astroturf in front of 4,000?! I know it's tough to pick one game per week, but you they have to show I-AA football in some of the better I-AA locations.

I have to agree with 89hen on this... They need to consider the quality of the team and game and the location as well.. It looks much better for I-AA to have games on national tv with packed stadiums.. I don't have a problem with some of the SWAC or MEAC games because you know any game at Southern or Jackson state will be full.. I'd just like them to avoid the obvious bad locations when they have the opportunity to do better while still giving equal time to as many schools as possible.

[rokamortis]

Update: This is a done deal so plan on some HBCU-watching this fall! :)

So the conference officials were just blowing smoke?

[*****]

So the conference officials were just blowing smoke?No, their statements were factual. The original press release had a couple vague statements in it (notice I added a couple words to it) that made it seem like the Conferences themselves had signed. They didn't, the schools of those Conferences did.

Bottom line, more I-AA on CSTV!

[Bearkat 21]

This moved on the wire a few minutes ago:

SWAC and MEAC deny deal with CSTV
NEW YORK (AP) — The Southwestern Athletic Conference followed the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in denying that it has reached an agreement with College Sports Television, which announced that it had a deal to televise football, basketball and other sports played by those conferences.
“Despite how it was reported in the CSTV press release the SWAC never agreed to this deal nor have we authorized a third party to negotiate a deal on its behalf,” SWAC commissioner Robert C. Vowels Jr. said in a statement Wednesday.
CSTV announced a deal with the SWAC, MEAC and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference on Tuesday.
Later in the day, MEAC commissioner Dennis E. Thomas released a statement similar to the SWAC’s.
Vowel said the SWAC has an exclusive national cable agreement with ESPN for men and women’s basketball and all other Olympic sports. ESPN also has the right to select SWAC football games, he said.
Thomas said the MEAC signed a seven-year agreement with ESPNU, a new ESPN channel dedicated to college sports, in February to cover multiple sports, including football and basketball.
CSTV reiterated its position on Wednesday with a statement, stating its agreement is with New Vision Sports Properties, a company hired by the SWAC, MEAC, and SIAC to collectively represent their television and marketing rights.
“Any disagreement is strictly between those parties,” CSTV said.
New Vision Sports Properties executive vice president Steven Malcolm also released a statement.
“The agreement CSTV made with New Vision Sports will result in an exclusive annual package of games consisting of non-conference and select conference games and events across all sports from the athletic programs of our clients, the SWAC, MEAC and SIAC,” he said.

[walliver]

Will we be watching HBCU sports on ESPNU, CSTV, or Court TV this fall.

Of the three networks listed above, the only one Charter delivers is Court TV, anyway.

[arkstfan]

HBCU's involved in a contract dispute over television. Never seen that headline before :)

I'm underwhelmed by the CSTV I-AA game of the week because it is so hit or miss on time. Pick a time slot and run it instead of bouncing around.

My Saturday's when I'm not at a game are pretty regimented. 11:00 am the Big 10 brunch feast on ESPN sometimes ESPN2 (which sometimes show Big East instead) and a bunch of games on ESPN Gameplan. At 11:30 the SEC joins in. 2:30 the SEC on CBS and rest of the BCS on ABC. 5:30 first ESPN night game on the Deuce followed by an ESPN game around 7.

It's routine and it helps develop viewership.

[*****]

... I'm underwhelmed by the CSTV I-AA game of the week ... My Saturday's when I'm not at a game are ... Big 10 ... Big East ... SEC ... BCS ... CBS ... ABC ... ESPN ...Nary a I-AA?
:nonono2: :nono: :splat: :boring: :anim_chai :spank: :asswhip: :eek: :rolleyes:

[arkstfan]

Didn't say that. I said there is no routine to fall into.

I watched SEMO-SIU on Fox Midwest and SIU-NIU on something or other. A handful of FIU and FAU games (including FIU-YSU), one Texas State game and flipped around amongst all the playoff games that were on GamePlan. Them's just what I remember. I tried to watch Albany-Stoney Brook but it was blacked out. :confused:

But I can't say that at 6:30 on Saturday night I will watch a I-AA game because there is no assurance that there will be a I-AA game on at 6:30.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

In my area (colse to Philly) we have a pretty set schedule. You have to check local listings, but usually we get the A-10 game of the week every week once the main season rolls around. It's not just Delaware either - I've watched JMU/W&M, and UMass and N'Eastern games too.

Furthermore, we get Ivy games (Penn and Princeton), and Lehigh football games (when they're on the road, play an Ivy/A10, or when it's Lehigh/Lafayette).

Generally speaking they are on during the day at 12-1PM. Rarely are they moved around. For our area, what are they going to compete with, Penn St. football?

:lmao:

Watch JoePa lose again, or JMU/W&M? Hmmm...

[*****]

Who here is going to watch the new HBCU offerings on ESPNU/Classic and CSTV? I am! :nod: