Gap widening between ACC, SEC in TV dollars

Gap widening between ACC, SEC in TV dollars


"It might just be time for Clemson’s conference to push those chips forward for an ACC Network.
Why? Look no further than the resounding success of the SEC in year one of its 24/7 TV network.
ESPN’s Brett McMurphy first reported Friday the SEC made a record $455.8 million this past year, which will distribute $31.2 million to each member institution. That’s an over $11 million increase from last year per school. Eleven. Million.
How big a gap has that created? Just last year the ACC was reportedly roughly $100,000 off from the SEC, sending $20.8 million to the 14-member schools and an undisclosed amount to partial partner Notre Dame. The figures for this past year haven't been released yet.
Elsewhere, the Pac-12, which also has a TV network, increased its revenue by $40 million last year and outgained both the Big Ten ($338.9) and SEC ($325.9), distributing $21 million per school.
One report estimates the Big Ten, which was the first to get in the TV network biz, will crack the $40 million barrier per school by 2017-18 at least. Sports Illustrated's Andy Staples agrees.

An All-ACC network has been talked about in recent years and would likely come through TV partner ESPN, which has rode the wave of success from running the SEC outfit. The Big Ten is affiliated with Fox Sports, while the Pac-12 owns its network outright.
At the ACC spring meetings, commissioner John Swofford kept to the party line of recent months regarding the TV channel. He says they are “right on schedule” per their plans for it.
“It’s in process. It doesn’t serve any real positive purpose for us to periodically give interim updates on that,” Swofford told the Orlando Sentinel. “The channel is a part of discussions about what’s the best route for us to go television-wise in the future with the league that we now have with 15 members, with our geographic footprint as a conference is the largest of any conference now. Those things give us opportunities, that previously we didn’t have. A potential channel is one of those. We anticipated it would be a two or three year stretch in getting to whatever endpoint…
“Discussion is what we thought we would be at this given time. We’ve got a great partner in ESPN and together we think we can do some really good things. At some point we’ll decide we’re going to do something and we’ll make that known. We’ve got a ways to go, but we’re pleased where we are in the process.”
The SEC’s figures are no surprise given Southeastern markets made up the top-seven of ESPN’s college football coverage. Three of those, however, are shared markets for the ACC in Greenville (No. 3, 4.1), Atlanta (No. 5, 3.8) and Jacksonville (No. 7, 3.5). Louisville (2.7), Richmond (2.6) and Charlotte (2.5) all made the top-15.
While basketball isn’t the huge money-maker, a Duke-UNC regular-season game in February earned a 2.6 rating, which made it the 11th-most viewed men’s college basketball game of all-time. Raleigh-Durham of course led the way (10.8), but Louisville (8.9), Charlotte (8.5) and even Greenville (7.2) weren’t far behind.
Overall, three ACC markets led ESPN’s college basketball viewing in Louisville (5.9, a shared market with Kentucky obviously bumping it up), Greensboro (3) and Raleigh-Durham (2.7). Charlotte (1.8) also cracked the top-10.
Expanded coverage on ESPN is expanding the conference's brand, but how long will it take – and how far will the ACC fall behind before an ACC Network comes to be? That answer will be a part of Swofford’s legacy going forward."