It’s a scary time to be a cable provider. As fewer people pay for TV, they begin looking at streaming options like Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Sling TV and many others. For a collegiate sports conference this presents a conundrum: what route do we take in distributing our content?
For the Big Sky Conference, a Division I organization in the western U.S., that route was Pluto TV. The conference will air all of its live streamed events on the free service that already has roughly six million active monthly users.
If you love the #NCAA, then you won’t wanna miss Big Sky Conference (Ch. 230), @PlutoTV’s newest channel! @BigSkyConf #FreeTV #Football pic.twitter.com/jWwzQ0uyls
— Pluto TV (@PlutoTV) July 17, 2017
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“We’re extremely excited to announce our new partnership with Pluto TV,” Big Sky Conference commissioner Andrea Williams said in a statement. “With the changing media landscape and the rise of cord-cutting, it’s important that the Big Sky adapt in order to allow our fans to stay connected to us. With our new partnership with Pluto TV, Big Sky fans can have access to video content at home or on their mobile device. As long as you have an internet connection, you’ll have Big Sky Conference content.”
With streaming rights being such a hot topic, it’s a smart move for Big Sky to pick a direction that will offer fans pain-free (and cost-free) content. It’s the first mid-major conference with a channel dedicated to 24/7 live content accessible from any device with internet capabilities.
“At Pluto TV we create unique, interest-based channels that connect with passionate communities,” Pluto TV CEO and co-founder Tom Ryan said in a statement. “By partnering with Big Sky Conference we’re able to draw in live college sports fans and provide them, for the first time, a free way to watch their favorite teams’ live games at home on their big screen TVs.”