Comcast, ACC Network announce carriage update

If you’re a Comcast cable holder, the ACC Network is finally coming to your home.

On Tuesday morning, Comcast and The Walt Disney Company, owner of the ACC Network, announced the newest carriage information. Customers will begin to have access to the Atlantic Coast Conference’s content “in the coming weeks,” per a joint statement from the companies.

“We are very pleased to have reached this comprehensive agreement with Disney to continue providing Xfinity customers access to their content across our industry-leading platform,” said Rebecca Heap, Senior Vice President, Consumer Products & Propositions, Comcast Cable.

The ACC Network was announced in July 2016 and officially launched in August 2019. Until now, it was available through most big cable providers with the glaring exception of Comcast. Streaming services like Hulu and YouTube TV also carry the channel.

Sean Breen, Executive Vice President, Platform Distribution, Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution, added commentary from Disney’s side.

“We’re very happy to extend our longstanding relationship with Comcast and continue to provide their Xfinity customers with Disney’s best-in-class programming,” Breen said. “In addition to our news, sports and general entertainment offerings, the launch of the ACC Network in the coming weeks, paired with the renewal of the SEC Network, will give Xfinity’s college sports fans long-awaited access to their favorite games.”

The SEC Network is in its eighth season, and the relationship between Disney and the conference will expand after the 2023 season. SEC football and men’s basketball will move exclusively to the Disney networks after being a partner with CBS since 1996. The deal is worth $300 million a year, making it the second-largest TV deal among the Power Five conferences behind the Big Ten.

The agreement between Comcast and Disney will continue distribution of Disney’s cable channels including ESPN, Freeform, the FX networks and National Geographic channels. Additionally, the agreement involves retransmission permission of ABC-owned TV stations in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston, Raleigh-Durham and Fresno.

Comcast launched Disney+ and ESPN+, two of Disney’s streaming platforms, earlier this year.