Starting next year, ESPN and The Tennis Channel will own the cable rights to all four Grand Slams.
TVWeek reports that the USTA will officially announce a deal giving ESPN cable rights to the U.S. Open on Monday. ESPN will split rights to the event with The Tennis Channel, mimicking previous deals with the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon.
ESPN and The Tennis Channel replace USA Network, which is getting out of the sports business.
A USTA spokesman told Tennis Week that “[t]he new deal will create a unified, summer long ‘Open Season’ for the sport of tennis.” ESPN already airs several events in the U.S. Open Series, a series of tournaments that run up to the U.S. Open.
Related: “USA to drop U.S. Open; ESPN/TTC could take over.” and “Truly the Grand Slam Network?“
Link to TVWeek article found via Fang’s Bites.
