Feb. 6, 2007

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. - Midway through its first season of production, OVCSports.TV, a collaboration with the Ohio Valley Conference, its member institutions and XOS Technologies, has been a hit with fans and conference officials alike.

The premium Web site service, launched in July 2006 at the conference's annual football media day, has webcast all conference home football and men's and women's basketball contests as well as all league championships, select contests in the sports of soccer and volleyball and will webcast select baseball and softball events this spring

"We have been very pleased to offer this new endeavor," said Dr. Jon A. Steinbrecher, Commissioner of the OVC. "We have received a terrific response from our institutions, our fans and our coaches about the product. The exposure that our teams and institutions have received is unprecedented. We are no longer just reaching fans on a local and regional level but expanding to global availability."

Of its more than 150 Network partners, XOS currently has 90 that stream some type of audio or video content with 15 conferences having at least one school that video streams at least one sport.

XOS also has conference-wide packages with four other conferences to webcast events, but the OVC is the only conference on the XOS system that has its entire membership (11 schools) webcasting every home football and men's and women's basketball game during the season. In fact, it is one of just three conferences nationally to provide that service to its fan base.

"The OVC is extremely progressive with its technology offerings," said Harry Stiff, XOS vice president of consumer marketing. "It's clear to see that the conference understands the growing demand for exclusive online video content, whether it's game highlights, player interviews, press conferences or actual pay-per-view games.

"From the beginning, the OVC has embraced this concept and has worked closely with us season by season to ensure that its fans enjoy the ultimate online sports experience."

While all OVC institutions are webcasting football and basketball contests, the sky is the limit for the future of the endeavor. Free content such as Coaches Shows and press conferences are already available at OVCSports.TV and schools are looking for other sports to stream.

Fans have embraced the package, as numerous viewers have logged on nightly to watch contests from around the league from the comfort of their homes. The packages offer unique opportunities for fans to access games they would not have been able to previously view in previous seasons.

OVC coaching staffs have also turned to the package as a way to see every league contest and scout future opponents without having to exchange game films with other teams.

Subscriptions are currently available on an annual, seasonal and per-event basis. This spring OVC schools will broadcast select baseball and softball events via www.OVCSports.TV.