Clay Travis of foxsports.com is reporting that DirecTV and the SEC Network are in negotiations and a deal could be in place soon.
The SEC Network is set for one of the most successful sports network launches in history now that DirecTV, the nation’s largest satellite company, emailed Outkick that the company is “quite hopeful” and “expects to be able to provide the network soon.” The public comments of DirecTV square with the private comments of SEC and ESPN executives, who are confident that a deal is near as well. DirecTV, which has over twenty million satellite subscribers, carries the Big Ten Network, but does not carry the Pac 12 Network The satellite company has, at times, engaged in contentious negotiations with content providers in an effort to keep costs lower. Its primary competitor in the satellite arena, Dish Network, became the first national satellite company to sign on for the network several months ago.
DirecTV’s negotiations with the SEC Network are part of a larger negotiation with the other ESPN networks, and while it is unclear exactly when those deals will be finalized, it’s a significant pick-up for the SEC Network and SEC fans across the country, especially for fans who hadn’t wanted to go through the hassle of changing providers. In conjunction with Outkick’s previous report that Comcast and the SEC Network are near an agreement, this would mean that every major cable and satellite company — excluding Time Warner — would carry the SEC Network, allowing ESPN and the SEC to hit their goal of roughly 75 million subscribers at launch.
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