In a move to preserve traditional access to college sports, Ohio State Senator Bill DeMora (D-Columbus) has introduced Senate Bill 94, which would prohibit public universities in Ohio from granting exclusive broadcasting rights for athletic events to streaming services like Peacock. This comes as the Big Ten now has a deal that would put some Ohio State football games and basketball games exclusively on Peacock.
The 2023 Ohio State-Purdue game marked a historic shift: it was the first time in 315 games—spanning over 20 years—that a Buckeyes football game wasn’t nationally televised, according to Ohio State’s College of Arts and Sciences. Instead you needed a Peacock subscription to access the game.
Beyond personal inconvenience, DeMora highlighted the economic impact on local establishments. Bars and restaurants, especially near Ohio State’s campus, rely on game days for significant revenue. During the 2023 Peacock-exclusive game, venues like Varsity Club reportedly paid $3,600 to stream the event due to per-television membership fees—an unsustainable burden for small businesses, DeMora contends. SB 94 seeks to ensure such games remain accessible on traditional broadcast channels, preserving community traditions and supporting local economies.
The bill also includes a provision requiring state universities to negotiate deals with streaming platforms, allowing enrolled students to watch athletic events for free. “Students at public universities should not have to pay out-of-pocket expenses any time they want to watch their classmates participate in sports,” DeMora emphasized, pointing to the $52 million in media rights revenue Ohio State athletics generated in 2024, per NCAA financial reports. Most media deals are negotiated by conferences like the Big Ten, which signed a seven-year agreement in 2022 projecting eight college football games annually on Peacock through 2029. SB 94 would apply only to new or renewed contracts.
This isn’t DeMora’s first attempt at such legislation; a similar bill introduced in February 2024 failed to pass before the legislative session ended, stalling after an introductory hearing. The current SB 94 awaits its first hearing in the Senate’s Higher Education Committee. Meanwhile, two Ohio State football games have already streamed exclusively on Peacock, including a September matchup against Michigan State, fueling DeMora’s resolve. “It’s ridiculous that we have to pay so much extra money to so many different services to watch my alma mater or any public university in Ohio,” he said. As streaming continues to reshape sports broadcasting, this bill could set a precedent for balancing tradition with technology—if it gains traction.
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