Brett McMurphy: ION emerges as potential Pac-12 media partner while Apple still hasn't made offer

There is new information about the state of the Pac-12 media deal, per a report by Brett McMurphy of Action Network.

According to McMurphy, Apple+ has not yet made any formal offers to the Pac-12. This comes shortly after it was reported that the conference was looking at streaming through Apple+ as its primary media partner.

However, ION has emerged as another potential media partner for the Pac-12. ION is owned by E.W. Scripps Company, which has 61 local TV stations. The network also recently launched Scripps Sports.

This report prompted Stewart Mandel of The Athletic to reach out to sources he has close to the situation. They refuted McMurphy’s initial report.

“ION/Scripps Sports is not involved in the Pac-12’s TV negotiations, a source with direct knowledge of the situation tells @TheAthletic,” Mandel tweeted.

All of this comes as rumors swirl that the Pac-12 is going to get less money from its media deal than is expected.

Despite a statement in mid-February from the conference earlier in February that the conference would have a media rights deal in the future, there are more and more complaints coming from within. That includes Arizona State AD Ray Anderson who recently voiced his frustration.

Now, as commissioner George Kliavkoff and the Pac-12 search for a partner, they must ask, should the conference go for exposure or money?

Insider explains the Pac-12’s major issue securing media rights

John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal explained one of the Pac-12’s biggest issues as it tries to secure a media rights deal.

“Here’s the problem that the Pac-12 faces. There was a good deal to be had six months ago, back when you were talking about how far apart the two sides were. In the ensuing six months, all of the traditional television stations — CBS, who had been kicking the tires, is out. FOX, which had been kicking the tires, did the Big 12 deal and [CEO Eric] Shanks told us, they’re pretty set with what they want in terms of college. NBC has its Big Ten and primetime, there’s not a lot there. And ESPN is becoming a lot more cost conscious. There are, as you said, must-have programming, which the NBA falls in, the NFL falls in, certain big college conferences fall in. Right now, it doesn’t look like the Pac-12 is falling into that,” Ourand said.

“Then, on the streaming side, all of a sudden, you have Wall Street that is no longer prioritizing gaining subscribers. They want to see profits, whereas you had all of these streaming companies competing against each other to drive up the prices and bidding wars. Now, they have to have a lot more discernment, they have to have a lot more responsibility in terms of what they’re paying so that they’re not overpaying. It’s just a really tough market if you’re a college conference that’s not the Big Ten or the SEC right now.”