Briefs
ACC channel still
awaiting deals
The Atlantic Coast Conference is roughly a month away from launching its new ESPN-partnered TV channel and still awaiting key deals with several cable providers to carry it.
The league and its schools need help from fans on that front.
Schools are posting messages on social media asking fans to contact cable providers and request them to carry the ACC Network ahead of its Aug. 22 launch. Several even have put messages atop their official athletics webpages urging fans to “demand” the network. And it’s a frequent talking point for school officials.
In an interview with the Associated Press, league commissioner John Swofford said those are coordinated efforts in a strategy directed by Disney-owned ESPN.
“This is something where you reach a point in time where pros sort of take over,” Swofford said Thursday during the ACC media days. “And the pros in this instance are ESPN distribution and Disney distribution. I think we’ve done our part and will continue to do our part at the institutional level and the conference level so we are a part of that. But you can only do so much, and that’s where we are at this point in time.”
ACC officials hope channel revenue closes a growing financial gap with its power-conference peers. The threshold for success remains unclear since the league hasn’t publicized financial projections for the network.
There are deals in place with several providers, including direct-to-customer services such as Playstation Vue and Hulu. There are no deals in several key markets of the league’s footprint, though Swofford has previously noted last-minute distribution deals are common in a process he called “stimulating” but also “stressful.”
Rams-Saints lawsuit continues
A Louisiana judge ruled Thursday that a damage lawsuit can continue against the NFL over the playoff “no-call” that helped the Los Angeles Rams beat the New Orleans Saints and advance to the Super Bowl.
State Civil District Court Judge Nicole Sheppard also ruled that attorney Antonio “Tony” LeMon can request documents and ask questions of NFL officials. LeMon said that means he will be able to question Commissioner Roger Goodell and three game officials in depositions about the lack of a penalty – pass interference or roughness – against Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman for his helmet-to-helmet hit on receiver Tommylee Lewis well before a pass arrived. The play came during a crucial point in January’s NFC title game.
Attorneys representing the NFL in the case didn’t immediately respond to emailed requests for comment. LeMon said he was informed Thursday that NFL attorneys, whose bid to stop the suit was rejected, would seek relief at a state appeal court.
LeMon says money isn’t the object of the February suit he and three others filed, which alleges fraud by NFL officials. It seeks only $75,000, which LeMon said would go to charity.
“The purpose of the lawsuit is not to get some minuscule amount of money. They won’t even notice that,” LeMon said. “It’s to get at the truth.”