CSTV AND BIG TEN CONFERENCE GREATLY EXTEND AND EXPAND RELATIONSHIP
CSTV AND BIG TEN CONFERENCE GREATLY EXTEND AND EXPAND RELATIONSHIP TO INCLUDE CSTV TELECASTS OF 10 BIG TEN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
CSTV Becomes "The New Home of Big Ten Championships" Via Multi-Year, Multi-Sport Programming and Marketing Partnership With Conference That Also Includes Video-On-Demand, Broadband and High-Definition Coverage
Network To Televise Big Ten Championships In Baseball, Soccer, Wrestling, Softball, Gymnastics, Swimming and Diving and Track and Field
NEW YORK, February 18, 2004 - Based on the success of their initial relationship, CSTV: College Sports Television (www.cstv.com), the first 24-hour college sports network, and the Big Ten Conference have extended and expanded their partnership into a multi-year, multi-sport programming and marketing partnership that will feature CSTV televising no fewer than 10 men's and women's Big Ten Championships per year. College Sports TV, "The New Home of Big Ten Championships," will televise more Big Ten Championships than any other network: baseball, men's soccer and women's soccer, men's swimming and diving and women's swimming and diving, wrestling, men's track and field and women's track and field, softball, and men's gymnastics and women's gymnastics.
College Sports TV will also televise an expanded schedule of Big Ten regular season action as a result of individual agreements with Big Ten institutions, including women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, ice hockey, volleyball, wrestling and baseball. In addition, College Sports TV may also present Big Ten action as part of its video-on-demand, broadband and high-definition offerings.
Since launching in April of 2003, College Sports TV has televised a variety of Big Ten regular season sports, including men's ice hockey, men's and women's lacrosse, field hockey, the 2003 Big Ten Men's Soccer Championship and the 2003 Big Ten Women's Soccer Tournament. Big Ten teams and student-athletes are featured extensively on the network's two live studio shows, CSTV Primetime and CSTV Scoreboard, which originate from the CSTV Fieldhouse in New York. In addition, student-athletes from the University of Illinois and the University of Michigan have been honored as part of College Sports TV's "Student-Athlete of the Week" and "Student-Athlete of the Month" initiative, which launched last fall.
CSTV's first telecasts as part of its extended and expanded partnership with the Conference will be the Big Ten Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving Championships on Sunday, March 7. The Men's Championships will air March 7 at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT and the Women's Championships will follow at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
"Our initial association with the Big Ten has been extremely successful and, as a result, we are significantly broadening our relationship," said Chris Bevilacqua, co-founder and executive vice president, CSTV. "Our Big Ten telecasts have provided unprecedented national television exposure for the Conference's teams and student-athletes while College Sports TV viewers have had front-row seats for the finest in intercollegiate athletic action. As we approach our first anniversary in April, this expanded and extended Big Ten partnership is a clear indicator of the value that leading athletic conferences and universities have seen in College Sports TV."
"The Big Ten's partnership with College Sports TV will provide a welcome increase in television opportunities for our men's and women's championships," said Big Ten Commissioner James E. Delany. "This relationship allows us to highlight the Big Ten's outstanding student-athletes and enhances the overall experience for all involved."
CSTV's Spring Big Ten Championship Telecast Schedule (all times ET)
Sunday, March 7 Men's Swimming & Diving Championships 6 p.m.
Sunday, March 7 Women's Swimming & Diving Championships 7 p.m.
Monday, March 8 Wrestling Championships 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 27 Women's Gymnastics Championships 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 27 Men's Gymnastics Championships 8:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 15 Softball Tournament TBD
Monday, May 24 Men's and Women's Outdoor Championships TBD
Saturday, May 29 Baseball Tournament TBD
schedule subject to change
The Big Ten's Athletic Excellence:
The Big Ten captured three national team and 16 individual titles during the 2002-03 season
The Big Ten has won more than 185 national team and 1,100 individual titles entering the 2002-03 season; the total includes 16 team championships over the last four seasons; in 1999-2000, the Conference celebrated six NCAA team titles (men's soccer, women's volleyball, wrestling, men's basketball, fencing, men's gymnastics), the most for the Big Ten in the last 10 years
Big Ten schools are among the national attendance leaders in football, men's and women's basketball and wrestling; during the 2002-03 season, more than 8.5 million fans attended Big Ten home contests in these sports
The Big Ten annually recognized more than 1,500 student-athletes over the past five years who achieved a "B"' grade point average or better on the Academic All-Conference teams, including a record total of 1,856 student-athletes during the 2002-03 school year
The Big Ten showcased more than 250 events that were televised nationally, regionally and locally last year, representing over 550 hours of programming
CSTV, the first 24-hour college sports network, is available to more than 15 million homes nationally on cable and satellite. The network is available on Adelphia and Insight cable systems, among others, and is also available on DirecTV (channel 610). For information on CSTV availability in particular markets, consumers can log on to www.cstv.com or call their cable or satellite operator.
CSTV has covered more college sports than any other network since launching last April. The network has televised almost 4,000 hours of original programming spanning 30 men's and women's college sports, including basketball, football, baseball, hockey, soccer, lacrosse and volleyball. College Sports TV's event, studio and original programs have covered more than 1,000 colleges and universities across all NCAA divisions and the NAIA. College Sports TV televises regular season and championship event coverage from every major collegiate athletic conference, and also televises nine NCAA Championships. The network also has a programming and marketing agreement with the U.S. Olympic Committee.
College Sports Television was co-founded by President/CEO Brian Bedol, Chairman Stephen Greenberg and Executive Vice President Chris Bevilacqua. Bedol and Greenberg co-founded Classic Sports Network, which they sold to ESPN and which is now ESPN Classic. Bevilacqua is a former senior executive with Nike Inc., where he headed the company's successful foray into the college market.
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Eric Handler
CSTV: College Sports Television
212-342-8760
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