Network makes significant financial investment in HD-quality streaming equipment
Approximately 200 events in seven sports to be available on BigTenNetwork.com
CHICAGO – The Big Ten Network will double its commitment to several Olympic sports this season by streaming at least 200 live events on www.BigTenNetwork.com. The network has made a significant financial investment to provide fans with a high-quality streaming experience that is comparable to watching a game in high definition.
The streaming initiative will offer two major benefits. First, it will allow fans to follow teams and sports that for the most part received significantly less coverage than other sports. And second, students on campus will have the opportunity to help produce the streamed events and learn more about television sports production, a highly competitive field. Furthermore, the 200 streamed events are in addition to the more than 350 events already airing on the network, creating a total of approximately 550 campus events the Big Ten Network is bringing to fans.
“The Big Ten Network’s investment includes a massive upgrade in equipment, including the use of state-of-the-art, portable production kits. As a result, fans will see these games with a significantly improved clarity,” Big Ten Network President Mark Silverman said. “In future years, the network’s streaming initiative will likely expand to other Big Ten sports to provide even more coverage to sports that previously received none and to offer students even more opportunities to produce events.”
Streamed events will primarily consist of women’s basketball, women’s volleyball, men’s exhibition basketball and a limited number of non-conference games, wrestling, men’s ice hockey, baseball and softball games during this academic year. Additional sports will likely be added in the future.
The streaming initiative is particularly beneficial to women’s basketball, which will have nearly 90 percent of all home games receiving television or internet coverage in 2009-10. Approximately 100 women’s basketball games will be streamed, in addition to the network’s 55 telecasts, giving Big Ten women’s basketball more exposure than any other conference.
Ohio State women’s basketball coach Jim Foster, whose team has finished atop the Big Ten standings each of the past five years, said the national exposure helps recruiting significantly. “The Big Ten Network streaming initiative is another great way to give our conference and women’s basketball the exposure it deserves. The best part is whether you are in Columbus or overseas, you can follow the Big Ten from anywhere.”
Coverage for women’s volleyball will increase as well. Penn State women’s volleyball coach Russ Rose, whose team has captured each of the last two NCAA Championships, said, “The Big Ten Network has been extremely beneficial not just to the sport of women’s volleyball, but to all of the Olympic sports programs. The coverage has dramatically increased the visibility and accessibility of all Big Ten programs for parents, young athletes, sports fans and coaches, as well. I’m positive that all the programs look forward to the increased coverage and the benefits it will continue to provide.”
Of the 200-plus events, there will be 21 non-conference men’s basketball games, plus all exhibition games. Unlike any other conference, the Big Ten will receive television or internet coverage for every single home men’s basketball game for the third straight year. Once again, nearly 90 percent of Big Ten home regular season games will be televised.
All events on www.BigTenNetwork.com will be available for just $2.99 per event, significantly less expensive than the cost of most other collegiate streaming services.
On each campus, students will be trained by Big Ten Network staff to help produce the streamed events. Some of this year’s 200 events, streamed due to schedule conflicts, also will be televised on a delayed basis. Last year, the network streamed 100 events.
The network previously announced its new international streaming package called “Big Ten Ticket,” available to fans outside of the United States, Canada and the Caribbean at www.BigTenTicket.com.
The full streaming schedule will be available at www.BigTenNetwork.com prior to the start of each sport’s season.
About the Big Ten Network: The Big Ten Network is the first nationally distributed network dedicated to covering one of the premier collegiate conferences in the country. With approximately 350 live events, and nearly all of them in HD, the network is the ultimate destination for Big Ten fans and alumni across the country, allowing them to see their favorite teams, regardless of where they live. The network operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, showcasing a wide array of classic-to-current sports and televising more Olympic sporting events and women’s sports than has ever been aired on any other network. Original programming highlights activities and accomplishments of some of the nation’s finest universities. Each year, the network televises between 35 and 40 football games, 105 regular season men’s basketball games; 55 women’s basketball games; dozens of Big Ten Championship events; Big Ten Tonight, a nightly studio show; coaches’ shows; and classic games. Available to all cable and satellite providers nationwide and in Canada, the network currently has agreements with more than 300 affiliates, including AT&T U-Verse, Cablevision, Charter, Comcast, Cox (Cleveland, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas), DirecTV, DISH Network, Insight, Mediacom, Shaw Cable and Shaw Direct (Canada), Time Warner Cable and Verizon FiOS. For updated information on the Big Ten Network, go to www.BigTenNetwork.com.
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