Courtesy: ESPN/SEC Network/DISH
A new deal between ESPN and DISH has given DISH carriage rights to the fledgling SEC network when the multiplatform network launches this Summer.
DISH will begin carrying the SEC Network beginning August 14th, 2014. The announced deal is just one part of a much larger groundbreaking deal signed this week between DISH and The Walt Disney Company. It makes DISH the first nationwide television provider for the SEC Network. The multiplatform deal includes coverage of over one thousand live events in just its first year. That number includes no fewer than forty-five exclusive SEC football games, over one hundred men’s basketball games, sixty women’s basketball games, seventy-five baseball games, fifty softball games, and even more events throughout the SEC’s twenty-one different sports.
As with the deal giving DISH broadcast rights for the Longhorn Network, this deal will see the SEC Network added to DISH America’s Top120+ and higher packages nationwide. Those that add the SEC Network to their satellite package will also have access to the network’s digital platform. That will allow audiences access to SEC Network content at home and on the go via computers and mobile web.
Terms of the deal partner ESPN and the SEC through 2034. Dave Shull, DISH Executive VP and CCO, spoke on behalf of the network in an interview about the deal. “Few fan bases rival the passion and loyalty of the SEC, and DISH is proud to be the first nationwide television provider of the SEC Network,” he said. “We strive to give our customers and consumers what they want, and there’s no better place for the college sports fan than with DISH.”
Justin Connolly, ESPN Senior VP of College Networks, expanded on Shull’s comments explaining just how important the deal is to ESPN and DISH. “This agreement provides DISH customers nationwide with access to every SEC college football game this fall and an unparalleled fan experience of more SEC content than ever before,” he said.
SEC Commissioner Mike Slive also spoke with reporters after the groundbreaking deal was signed and sealed. He expressed to reporters the importance of the deal not only for the SEC, but also for fans of SEC athletics. “This is an important day for the SEC Network,” he said. “We are pleased to welcome DISH to the SEC family. More than five months ahead of the network launch, it’s exciting to have a national distributor and our first satellite provider onboard. Now SEC fans from across the country have another way to show their conference pride and sign up to get the SEC Network.”
DISH customers can find out later this year where they can find the SEC network on their carrier online at http://www.dish.com. More information on this deal and more from ESPN is available online at http://espn.go.com and http://www.facebook.com/ESPN. To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it. Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.
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