Big Ten Network News

TheCapTimes - Big Ten Network, Comcast finalize deal; no quick Charter-BTN deal seen

Charter's Official Stance:

Background
Big Ten Network (BTN) debuted on August 30, 2007. The Network is a partnership between Fox Sports and the Big Ten Conference, and focuses specifically on sports-related content activities surrounding the Big Ten Conference schools. The Big Ten is comprised of 11 universities, located in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Ohio & Pennsylvania.

Fox Sports manages the Big Ten Network service on a day-to-day basis.

The Big Ten Network is one of several channels that has access to Big Ten sporting events, specifically football and basketball. ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, CSTV and Versus will continue to provide many Big Ten Conference televised events. Obviously, with a 24-hour channel devoted to the Big Ten Conference, a wider variety of programming will be offered on the channel for those viewers who are interested in sports and specifically Big Ten Conference sports.

FAQs
What is Charter’s position regarding carriage of the Big Ten Network (BTN)?
Our priority is to continue providing the best value and choices to our customers. Therefore, we are interested in carrying BTN in a manner that takes into account the best interests of all Charter customers.

Fox Sports’ most recent terms require Charter to carry the service to all customers on Expanded Basic at a very high per-customer cost.

Comcast and BTN just announced an agreement for carriage.

What is preventing Charter from doing the same, and when will Charter add BTN to our offerings?
As our customers already know, Charter wants to provide the Big Ten Network, but in a manner that is in the best interest of ALL our customers. We are hopeful that our negotiations with Fox Sports will result in a positive outcome for our customers.

Why does Charter refuse to provide BTN, when there are customers who want to see Big Ten Conference events?
Charter is more than willing to provide BTN to our customers. BTN needs to be sensitive to the fact that if they want BTN to be accessible to ALL customers, it must be at a much more reasonable cost per customer. In addition, all new channels Charter has added in the last several years have been in a digital format and so we must insist that Charter be allowed to distribute BTN in a digital format as well. We feel these reasonable requests are in the best interests of all our customers.

What kind of feedback have you received from customers regarding this issue?
Following your favorite sports team is an emotional experience for many fans, so we have heard from a segment of our customers that want their team on TV every week regardless of which network carries the game or the price involved.

However, we have also heard from another significant segment of customers who are sensitive to the cost of new channels we add to our line-up.

Informal surveys have all indicated a majority of customers do not want BTN on Expanded Basic if it comes with a high cost impact. We are working hard to make the terms of our agreement with Fox Sports for BTN reasonable.

Where can I go for more info on the rising cost of sports programming?
Go to: www.puttingfansfirst.com