ESPN is reporting that earlier this week, Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff presented the conference’s governing body with several offers for the league’s TV and streaming rights when the group’s current television contract expires after this school year. However, the report notes that a “primarily subscription-based Apple streaming deal” was clearly on top of the pile.
The deal is expected to be a relatively short-term contract with Apple kicking off in 2024-25 as a subscription package separate from an Apple TV Plus subscription, along the lines of what Apple has done with Major League Soccer.
While the financial terms were not disclosed, sources said that the renumeration would initially be relatively low compared to the league’s hopes but would grow incrementally based on reaching certain subscription milestones, “and potentially be competitive with its peers in the Big 12 and ACC down the road.”
Also Read: Pac-12 in Talks With The CW on New National TV Rights Deal
With seemingly limitless coffers, Apple has been snapping up major sports streaming rights in recent years. In March 2022, the company acquired the rights to stream Friday Night League Baseball from Major League Baseball.
In June 2022 the company inked a 10-year, $2.5 billion deal to stream Major League Soccer. The company also kicked the tires on NFL Sunday Ticket, but came away empty-handed.
In June, Apple was instrumental in luring Argentinian World Cup soccer megastar Lionel Messi away from a $430 million Saudi Arabian offer to play for Inter Miami, offering the player a percentage of revenue from new MLS Season Pass signups.
However, the Pac-12 offer may be a Hail Mary pass, as the conference is currently facing a bit of a meltdown.
Deadline is reporting that rival college athletics conference the Big Ten is evaluating expansion just as numerous reports suggest that as many as four Pac-12 colleges — Oregon, Washington, Stanford and the University of California — may be ready to jump ship. Just last week Colorado voted to return to the Big 12.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Board of Regents is scheduled to meet Thursday to discuss the fate of Arizona State and Arizona Athletics in light of Colorado’s decision and the uncertainty surrounding Pac-12.
With UCLA and USC set to desert the league in 2024, it’s unclear how much more attrition the league can withstand, or if Apple’s offer is generous enough to entice any of the teams to stay.
