Comcast, Fox Reach Deal Ending Big Ten Net Dispute

Fox Networks Group and Comcast reached a deal that enables cable subscribers to watch Big Ten college football games on FS1 and The Big Ten Network.

The deal comes just before the previous deal was set to expire at the end of the month.

Related: Fox Warns The Big Ten Deal With Comcast is Expiring

According to a brief statement, Comcast will continue to offer the Big Ten Network to customers who reside in states with Big Ten schools. Xfinity customers in Delaware and the District of Columbia, who are close to the University of Maryland, will also get the network.

Comcast said customers outside of those areas will be able to get the Big Ten Network as part of its sports and entertainment package.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Earlier this year, Comcast dropped the Big Ten network outside of the states where Big Ten schools are located.

Fox launched a campaign to make football fans aware that the dispute with Comcast could make games unavailable at the start of the season. 

Speaking at the Big Ten's media kickoff in Chicago on July 24, Mark Silverman, president of Fox Sports National Networks and the Big Ten Network said there was "a very real possibility" games could get blacked out and that the network hadn't gotten a "substantive response" from Comcast.

Earlier this month, Fox launched an ad campaign featuring Big Ten football coaches addressing the dispute.

Comcast was a holdout when the Big Ten Network was originally launched, agreeing to a 10-year carriage agreement a year after it went on the air.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.