Pitt Panthers Announce Their Own TV Channel

In association with the Comcast Network, the University of Pittsburgh announced its own TV channel that will air live sports including men’s and women’s basketball plus various Olympic sports. In addition, Pitt Panthers Television will re-air Pittsburgh home football games and air coach Dave Wannstedt’s press conference live.

There will be on-demand programming made available to Comcast customers in Western Pennsylvania. Let’s see if this begins a rash of deals between college athletic departments and various cable providers to give exclusive content to fans.

Pitt And Comcast To Launch Pitt Panthers Television Featuring More Than 500 Hours Of Live And On Demand Sports Programming

Pitt and The Comcast Network are proud to announce the launch of Pitt Panthers Television, a breakthrough programming service that will annually present more than 500 additional hours of Pitt athletics coverage to area fans exclusively on The Comcast Network, including live broadcasts of men’s basketball games this season and football coach Dave Wannstedt’s weekly press conferences as well as re-airs of all home football games.

Pitt Panthers Television, which debuts Sept. 21, will also broadcast live football and men’s basketball pre- and postgame shows, women’s basketball games and women’s volleyball games as well as other Olympic sports and original programming. It will also bring rebroadcasts of football and basketball games to Comcast’s Xfinity On Demand platform, allowing Comcast digital customers to enjoy all the Panthers’ great moments whenever they want.

“Comcast is excited to make this exclusive programming available to our customers,” said Jerry Norris, Comcast Vice President of Marketing for the Keystone Region. “Just as Pitt is committed to athletic excellence, Comcast is committed to giving our customers more of the programming they want, and Pitt Panthers Television gives them more choice and – with its Xfinity On Demand content – more control.”

Comcast digital customers living in Western Pennsylvania and parts of Central Pennsylvania will see Pitt Panthers Television throughout the week on The Comcast Network (channel 188 or 210, see listing below), including eight consecutive hours every Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Those customers can also access Xfinity On Demand by selecting the Get Local, Sports and Pitt Panthers TV folders.

Pitt and Comcast’s joint efforts will offer the best Panthers coverage available. For the latest television schedules, visit Panthers On The Air at PittsburghPanthers.com.

“We are so pleased to team with Comcast to bring Panthers fans hundreds of new hours of Pitt programming,” Pitt Athletic Director Steve Pederson said. “We know from our current viewership numbers that the public wants as much Pitt sports programming as we can give them. This will also give us an opportunity to showcase our entire program in a way that has not been previously seen. With quality sports content being so important right now on television, this partnership with Comcast stands out in particular. We know that our fans will enjoy the launch of Pitt Panthers Television.”

The Comcast Network is on channel 188 in the following systems:
CORAOPOLIS, BADEN, PITTSBURGH, DARLINGTON, GREENSBURG, ANCHOR, MCKEESPORT, RURALVALLEY, TARENTUM, KISKI, WASHINGTON, CANONSBURG, WAYNESBURG, BEAVER FALLS, MIDLAND, ROCHESTER AND PENN HILLS 

The Comcast Network is on channel 210 in the following systems:
BETHEL PARK, UPPER ST. CLAIR, MCMURRAY, MT. LEBANON, MONROEVILLE, MURRYSVILLE, PLUM, NEW CASTLE , BLAIRSVILLE, INDIANA, LATROBE, ADAMS, ARMAGH, BEDFORD, CENTRAL CITY, CRESSON, PUNXSUTAWNEY, DUBOIS, RIDGWAY, AND SMETHPORT

That’s certainly an innovative agreement for an individual school.

About Ken Fang

Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013. He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television. Fang celebrates the three Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.

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