As thousands of fans watched Oregon football on television this weekend, they inadvertently tuned in to the subject of a dispute between the University and local CBS affiliate KVAL.
The University recently filed a legal complaint against the station in Lane County Circuit Court to force it to cease broadcasting football footage on KVAL’s post-game show, “Inside the PAC.”
Vice President for Administration Dan Williams said KVAL’s broadcast of clips from past games this year infringed on the University’s exclusive contract for regional coverage with cable sports network ESPN. He said although the University will supply any news agency with clips for news purposes, its contract forbids that the footage be used for entertainment purposes.
But KVAL General Manager Dave Weinkauf said the University should allow KVAL’s post-game program to broadcast the clips because other similar sports shows are allowed to broadcast them.
The University filed its complaint in court Nov. 8 and asked for a temporary order preventing the station from airing the football footage. Instead, the judge asked both parties to work out a compromise, and the University and KVAL reached a tentative agreement that will allow the station to use some footage through the end of the football season, Weinkauf and Williams said.
Although KVAL and the University reached an arrangement, the underlying issues of the disagreement remain.
“The legal action we initiated is pending,” Williams said. “But the issue of the complaint is still there.”

An issue of coverage rights
The dispute centers on KVAL’s use of football footage on its sports magazine show, which airs Sunday afternoons. Weinkauf said that this year, the University began faxing the station a copy of its media policy, which limits football coverage.
“In checking with other broadcasters around the state, I haven’t found anybody else who has had the policy faxed to them,” Weinkauf said.
The policy was designed to protect the University’s “product” – the football coverage. Williams said all athletic coverage is valued at more than $750,000.
The University has argued that KVAL damaged its product by broadcasting previously unaired footage of the football team.
Dave Heeke, associate director of external operations for the athletic department, said coverage of the Duck games is a vital revenue resource for the University. Heeke said there were “major financial issues at stake” in the debate between KVAL and the University because of the high level of local interest in Duck football and the growing national recognition of the University’s sports teams.
But Weinkauf points out that the footage already airs multiple times on several other sports magazine shows, including those on Fox Sports Network, CNN and Northwest Cable News, as well as showing up in highlight clips on local news broadcasts. ABC affiliate KEZI also airs video on its “Mike Bellotti Show” on Sunday afternoons through a separate contract agreement with ESPN.
“It’s not like this footage hasn’t been seen before,” Weinkauf said. “We understand the University is trying to protect a valuable product. However, the contract between ESPN and the UO does not call for the kind of protection they’re trying to get.”
KVAL had coverage rights to the football footage for nine years before the University granted coverage rights to rival station KEZI this summer in what was believed to have been a $1.4 million deal.
Weinkauf said that in the last two years of KVAL’s contract with the University, KEZI broadcast a sports highlight show following Monday Night Football that featured extensive Pac-10 game coverage. When KVAL complained to the University, Weinkauf said the station was told there was no way to prevent KEZI from airing the coverage. And, he said, the University actually liked having the extra exposure for its sports teams.
The University and KVAL plan to have a formal agreement hammered out by the start of the basketball season, Williams said, and both sides said they believe the current agreement is fair.
“It’s not exactly what they want and it’s not exactly what we want, but under the circumstances, it’s the best solution,” Williams said.
Weinkauf agreed.
“I believe this is a reasonable position,” Weinkauf said. “We’re happy with the compromise that we’ve agreed to with the University.”