DirecTV, Fox headed toward retrans showdown

Packers-Bears, FIFA World Cup, and more could be affected For Chicago-area DirecTV subscribers, the possibility of losing the Green Bay Packers-Chicago Bears game from Soldier Field Sunday probably would be a bigger deal if Justin Fields wasn’t questionable to play and both teams had better records.  But since the FIFA World Cup and the Big Ten Championship Game are on […]

It’s official: Big Ten signs new deals with Fox, CBS, NBC; freezes ESPN out

  Peacock to get big boost as number of games increases. Also: HBCU games go to CBS’ twelve non-primary affiliates  The reports were circulating but now it’s official: The Big Ten has re-upped with Fox Sports, while striking new deals with Paramount Global  and Comcast’s NBCUniversal for CBS and NBC/Peacock, respectively as first reported by Sports Business Journal. The Fox […]

Report: Big Ten to make deals with Fox, CBS, NBC, snubs ESPN

The Worldwide Leader frozen out of the Big Ten after carrying games from the conference for 40 years After 40 years, ESPN is apparently out of the Big Ten business. The network on Tuesday withdrew from negotiations on trying to keep a Big Ten package in some form after the conference is expected to strike mega-deals with Fox, CBS, and […]

Comcast, Big Ten Network reach a deal

The Chicago Tribune is reporting Comcast and the Big Ten Network have reached an agreement for the collegiate sports network to be put on Comcast’s expanded basic package effective on August 15 in states with Big Ten schools including Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. After the 2008-09 college basketball season ends, Comcast has the option to put BTN on an […]

Comcast, Big Ten Network near deal

It’s too late for the just-about-to-conclude college basketball season, but Comcast and the Big Ten Network are close to a deal that would put the new college sports net on its extended basic package.Comcast recently dropped a provision in its stance, stating BTN was a “niche” channel, and should be regulated only to a sports tier. Currently, BTN is not […]

Can The Big Ten Network win?

Teddy Greenstein in today’s Trib talks about the soon-to-launch Big Ten Network and how it is struggling to get carriage among the Midwest’s biggest cable operators, including Comcast, Time Warner, Wide Open West, and Charter systems. The Big Ten Network also wants to be on an expanded sports tier, and not a pay-for-play sports tier. BTN officials point that the […]

Big Ten Network to headquarted here (Take that Indy!)

They may have gotten the tournament, but we got their network… The new Big Ten Network announced yesterday that it is basing its headquarters here in Chicago on Chicago Avenue in the renovated Montgomery Wards building. There was a ribbon-cutting ceremony held at the new headquarters, with dignitaries including Mayor Daley and Alderman Walter Burnett Jr.(27th).

Former college football coach dies at TV station

The legendary University of Michigan football coach Bo Schembechler collapsed this morning while preparing to tape a program at WXYZ-TV in Detroit. He died later at a Southfield, Mich. hospital. Mr. Schembechler was 77. This comes a day before one of the biggest football games in the school’s history: #1 Ohio State vs. #2 Michigan in Columbus, Ohio. I saw […]