CBS and Turner Sports could be the front runners to acquire rights to the NCAA Tournament.
Sports Business Daily reported on Friday that ESPN “has told the NCAA that it will not increase its bid” to acquire the Men’s NCAA Tournament, “clearing the way for CBS and Turner to share the rights starting next year.”
The NCAA stressed to Sports Business Daily that no decisions or agreements have been made in regards to the negotiations, and that “discussions/negotiations are ongoing with multiple parties.”
Under the current, backloaded television contract, CBS will have to pay the NCAA $710 million annually over the next three years — compared to just $320 million in the first year of the contract.
CBS and Turner have reportedly proposed a 14-year deal that is worth more annually.
Even with the increased rights fee, the proposed deal would presumably still be more affordable for CBS than the current deal, since the network would be able to split the rights fee with Turner. And since the increased rights fee would be better for the NCAA as well, signs seem to point away from the continuation of the status quo.
USA Today reported Thursday that though the CBS/Turner bid “might be higher than ESPN’s,” the “numbers from all bidders could change in the coming days and weeks.” That in mind, it should be pointed out that the NCAA is still hoping to “reengage ESPN in some way,” according to Sports Business Daily.
A CBS/Turner deal would likely coincide with the introduction of an expanded, 96-team NCAA Tournament. Under such a deal, CBS and Turner would alternate rights to the Final Four each year, and each game in the tournament would air nationally across CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV (formerly Court TV).
