• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Watching the Tigers Will Cost You -- Buy a Ticket, or Buy CSTV to See First Three Rounds

Posted on: Thursday, 9 March 2006, 09:00 CST

By Jim Masilak masilak@commercialappealcom

Want to watch the University of Memphis men's basketball team play in the Conference USA Tournament?

Then either buy a ticket, fire up the satellite dish or call your local cable operator.

While most regular-season C-USA games involving the UofM this season aired on WLMT (Channel 30) in the Memphis area, there will be no local broadcasts during the first three rounds of the C-USA Tournament, which begins today at FedExForum.

College Sports TV (CSTV) holds exclusive national rights to the first three rounds of the tournament as part of a six-year deal with C-USA.

CSTV president and CEO Brian Bedol said the network is contractually prohibited from simulcasting the games on local stations - or anywhere else - as part of its carriage agreements with cable operators and other distributors.

"It's not something we could endeavor to do even if we wanted to," Bedol said. "We aren't permitted to take our programming and place it on another network."

Rights to the C-USA Tournament, Bedol added, are separate from the pre-existing deal WLMT had to broadcast certain UofM conference games in the Memphis market.

That deal, he said, has now expired and, in any case, never included the conference tournament.

"Next year (C-USA games involving) Memphis will be exclusively on CSTV," Bedol said. "It won't be on (Ch. 30). The only reason they were this year was because we're a new rights-holder and we inherited a pre-existing contract.

"Everything didn't line up perfectly with pre-existing deals. The (Ch. 30) deal this year was an overlap that was set to expire at the end of this year."

Jack Peck, vice president and general manager for Clear Channel TV in Memphis, said WLMT would have been interested in carrying the games if possible.

"From their (CSTV's) perspective, they're on Time Warner. Their goal is to get on basic cable," Peck said. "They're looking at this as an opportunity to show their value in the Memphis market."

In the Memphis area, CSTV is available via either direct broadcast satellite services such as DirecTV and DISH Network, or on Time Warner Cable as part of the either $3.99- or $1.99-monthly digital sports tier.

While CSTV is available in some markets on basic cable, Bedol said "it is up to cable operators how they package it. We have no control over how local distributors package the service."

CSTV will televise each of Thursday's quarterfinal games and Friday's semifinal games.

CBS, which recently purchased CSTV, will air the C-USA championship on Saturday at 10:30 a.m.

Today's four first-round games will be broadcast via pay-per- view at CSTV.com .

All C-USA Tournament games not involving the Tigers will be broadcast live on the radio by WHBQ-AM (560). Tiger games are on WMC- AM (790).

The No. 5-ranked Tigers (27-3) open tournament play Thursday at 6 p.m. with a quarterfinal game against either Marshall or Tulane.

- Jim Masilak: 529-2311

--------------------

Inside

Best of the fresh: Shawne Williams is the fourth Tiger in six years to be named C-USA's top rookie. C6

The Tournament on TV

Today's first round: No television

Thursday's quarterfinals: All games on CSTV (Ch. 651 on Time Warner Digital Cable)

Friday's semifinals: Both games on CSTV

Saturday's final: WREG (3)

--------------------

Source: Commercial Appeal, The

More News in this Category