Before the Pac-12 all but dissolved following the expansion plans announced by five conference members this week, it nearly reached an agreement for a new-age media deal.
Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff presented to conference presidents and chancellors a media rights deal partnering with Apple TV. The reported agreement would have primarily streamed Pac-12 athletics on Apple TV, a different direction than more common media agreements such as the linear television options in the Big Ten’s media rights agreement made in 2022.
According to Stewart Mandel of The Athletic, the terms of the proposed Apple TV deal included an annual base rate of $23 million per program with incentives placed on the number of subscribers that would raise the payouts. There was an opt-out clause if the agreement didn’t reach a “specific revenue target” after the third year.
Mandel also reported that “that deal, which involved multiple partners, fell apart at the 11th hour.” After progress toward an agreement halted, that’s when Oregon and Washington announced their plans to join the Big Ten, and then Arizona, Arizona State and Utah announced decisions to jump to the Big 12, all beginning in 2024.
The future of the remaining four Pac-12 programs — Cal, Oregon State, Stanford and Washington State — remains unclear. The conference could pursue a number of next steps, such as merging with another conference or figuring out terms for a prospective media rights contract.
