As has been mentioned numerous times by what appear to be more legally backed minds is the initial letter by BB was the foundation for litigation. And, while I agree with your assessment the most likely result will be a settlement, the discussion still has merit for how much.
Big 12 Send Cease and Desist to ESPN
- Thread starter Urbandale2013
- Start date
Disagree. There is def a case to be heard; not saying it's slam dunk on the merits because I don't really know the merits.
However, if you mean it won't go to court because it will get settled first, then I totally agree on that.
IMO, it's not merely reducing the existing contract, but the 'residual' damage if the conference is forced to disband with the members having to settle for much lower contracts. And, yes, ESPN's health is tied to Disney. So, 'publicizing' this without negatively influencing its legal position should be part of the B12's strategy. Disney does NOT want this to become a scandal. They're already on the negative image hook from the majority of universities.
They are waiting to see how this plays out I would guess. Let the big XII lawyers do a chunk of research and fact finding, see how it plays out and then jump in if it looks to trend well.
A conference can not initiate calls to another conferences teams. The teams have to. If the AAC just contacted any big XII teams, it’s a violation
The other factor that no one seems to talk about is... ESPN, by undercutting the viability of the Big XII if OU and UT exit before the end of their (Fox's) television contract with the Big XII - has reduced the value of Fox's contract. They should be able to sue for lost earning due to ESPN's behind the scenes working to undermine the value of Fox's broadcast property.
Violation of what?
We are talking about tortious interference with contract. They haven’t come close to meeting the elements. AAC didn’t induce anyone to leave. There has been no actual breach.
There is no case at this time. What is the case? It would get thrown out of court at this point.
A conference can, a media company with contracts with both entities cannot orchestrate such a maneuver.
Assuming all the facts in the letter are correct it’s not enough to go to court with.
I’m not exactly sure which rule it is, but the SEC and PAC 12 both mentioned that they did not/can’t contact teams first. It is like calling a recruit when they are a freshman or sophomore, it’s a no go. They can call you but you can’t call them. The PAC12 commissioner made that perfectly clear in his press conference.
That’s because they don’t want to get found to be tortuously interfering with the contract. But it’s no rule of the NCAA or anything like that.
The 8 need to show solidarity, stick together, milk OU, Texas and maybe ESPN for all you can get. Then? I think the best might be to stay together, poach a few teams and try for a Fox package. Yes - us to the BIG would be great, but I am doubtful.
If it's a legally binding contract then it is covered by contract law.
You take this stuff way to seriously I was doing a play on words with his post
I think this is a great way to look at it. People thinking the Big 10 needs to try to match the SEC move, or if they expand it needs to be a counter-move to the SEC need to realize that no such move exists. There is nothing the Big 10 is going to do that is going to match that doesn't essentially dissolve the ACC and/or PAC.
Second, you don't have to match them, you just need to make sure you stay relevant and your top school(s) can to an extent keep up. I think IF conferences remain a thing, I do see uneven distribution as a way the Big 10 might need to make that happen. Teams need to understand that outside the Big Dogs in a conference, the difference in values among the "good" teams and "bad" teams doesn't really mean all that much in the total contract. Now, those marginal differences can add up to make a conference better, but the future could get cutthroat. If it does, no team outside of the bluebloods should feel secure in their place. Also, there is nothing stopping a team for paying a heavy price to join a conference and undercut others.
Last, being rash and doing something crazy for the Big 10 or Fox to jump into an arms race with the SEC or ESPN could be a disaster. I don't think the financial viability of broadcasting college football is certain enough that you'd want to do something crazy like get over the massive GoR hurdle and try to get Notre Dame and Clemson. And short of that, nothing is going to match OU and UT on a team for team basis in terms of media value. Big 10 is already several teams behind in terms of massive, national Brands. Sorry, USC, Oregon, UW aren't even close. The first two are big names, but they aren't going to juice a media contract at all like UT or OU.
So Big 10 and Fox can sit back and see how this shakes out and still be fine. They could add content and teams that are modest investments to try to compete on a volume basis and be fine.
