Pac-12 Enterprises is set for success with scalable broadcast modernization
When the Pac-12 Conference faced one of the most turbulent periods in its history, their broadcast production arm, formerly Pac-12 Networks, stood at a crossroads. With the departure of legacy member universities, the organization faced an existential challenge. Rather than retreat, they chose to reinvent themselves as Pac-12 Enterprises—reimagining live sports broadcasting with greater agility, efficiency, and innovation.
From crisis to catalyst: A strategic pivot
In 2023, the Pac-12 Conference was rocked by realignment. A total of 10 universities departed for other conferences and two schools—Oregon State and Washington State—remained to carry the Pac-12 banner.
Pac-12 Networks, the conference’s media company and cable television channels, was officially sunset. Their final responsibility was to deliver over 850 broadcasts during the 2023-24 athletic season. To continue the conference’s broadcast operations, Pac-12 Enterprises was formed.
“Every morning, I woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep,” recalled Michael Molinari, SVP of Business Development and Studio Operations. “My mind would just race, how are we going to do this?”
The new team was tasked with completing their state-of-the-art broadcast facility in San Ramon, California—under tight deadlines and pandemic-era supply chain constraints. While supporting Pac-12 Networks’ final season, Pac-12 Enterprises also had to onboard clients, connect venues and deliver flawless live productions—all with a leaner team and tighter budgets.
The pressure peaked when an external client’s broadcast was jeopardized just one week before airtime due to complications with the original network. Without a solution, the broadcast risked cancellation.
Real-time infrastructure for real-time sports
In that critical moment, Pac-12 Enterprises turned to their trusted partner: Lumen. Within minutes, Lumen deployed Network-as-a-Service (NaaS), restoring connectivity and saving the live broadcast. What began as a rapid response to a crisis became the catalyst for a deeper, more strategic partnership.
NaaS is a flexible, self-service network solution that allows organizations to scale bandwidth on demand—perfect for the unpredictable nature of live sports production. For Pac-12, it meant:
- Low latency as low as 1/5th of a second—for real-time production and referee review.
- On-demand bandwidth provisioning (1–10 Gbps), providing cost-effective scaling for events from beach volleyball to NCAA tournaments.
- Built-in redundancy and reliability for uninterrupted uptime, especially during high-stakes productions.
- Lumen® Internet On-Demand (IoD) and Lumen® Ethernet On-Demand (EoD), supporting rapid provisioning of high-bandwidth circuits and seamless traffic flow between remote venues and production endpoints.
Howie Chung, Director of Engineering Infrastructure, explained, “Previously we would work to provision dedicated circuits, which would take time and would be cost prohibitive. With NaaS, the ability to provision high-bandwidth circuits within minutes was key.”
Engineering for performance: Inside the San Ramon hub
Since 2012, Pac-12 Enterprises has relied on Lumen® Vyvx media transport services to deliver live sports broadcasts quickly and reliably. That long-standing partnership laid the groundwork for something bigger: a next-generation production facility in San Ramon, California, built to support a new way of working.
This new approach is called REMI—short for Remote Integration Model. Instead of sending full production crews to every game, REMI allows Pac-12 to capture live event footage remotely and transmit it to their centralized location for production and distribution. This model dramatically reduced costs and logistical complexity while maintaining broadcast quality.
“This building was designed with REMI in mind,” said Molinari. “We’ve produced over 10,000 events. We’re not a fledgling in the production department—we’re ready to go.” The San Ramon facility is now one of the largest and most advanced IP broadcast centers of its kind on the West Coast.
Thanks to the powerful Lumen Network, Pac-12 Enterprises can deliver high-quality broadcasts with near-zero delays. “We’ve done a 20-path show out of this building, and our delay is just a fifth of a second,” Molinari added. “Whether the truck is 600 feet away or 600 miles away, there’s not much difference.”
Financial impact: Increasing production revenue with leaner ops
Born from the legacy of Pac-12 Networks, Pac-12 Enterprises not only survived the upheaval—it emerged stronger. The production capabilities and assets helped attract new member schools for the league, including Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, San Diego State, Texas State and Utah State. They are also opening new opportunities for future media partnerships starting in 2026.
The impact of the Lumen partnership has been transformative:
- Business growth: In just months, Pac-12 Enterprises has seen strong revenue growth. They now serve both current and future member schools.
- Broadcast excellence: Pac-12 now produces network-quality shows with just 1/5th of a second delay—far outperforming competitors, who often experience 2–3 second delays.
- Cost savings: REMI production and on-demand bandwidth have slashed infrastructure and operational costs by eliminating the need for full production trucks and extensive travel.
- Scalability: The flexible infrastructure in place supports the onboarding of seven new member schools by July 2026.
“With the Lumen partnership, we’ve been able to have really amazing connectivity—not just high-speed, but intelligent pricing. It’s truly a partnership,” Molinari emphasized.
AI, automation and the future of live production
With growing momentum, Pac-12 Enterprises is focused on the future of sports broadcasting, exploring new technologies that enhance both production and fan experiences.
A new collaboration with Goal Line Productions is already pushing boundaries. Together, they’re integrating a 100-foot curved LED wall to create immersive 3D effects that bring fans closer to the action.
AI is also central to their vision. With a century of archived content, they are exploring how automation can streamline highlight creation, improve storytelling and support live production. “AI will allow our people to focus on what matters most—strategy and creativity,” said Molinari.
“We’re looking at integrating AI into our facility and live productions this season—whether it’s for content creation, camera tracking or captioning,” added Chung.
To power these innovations, Pac-12 Enterprises continues to rely on high-speed, low-latency networks from Lumen. “Our ability to leverage AI depends on the strength of our infrastructure,” Chung said. “Lumen helps us stay aligned with the future of sports production.”
Innovation and partnership turn disruption into opportunity
The story of Pac-12 Enterprises is more than a comeback—it’s a blueprint for resilience in the face of disruption. With Lumen as a trusted partner, they didn’t just adapt; they redefined what’s possible in college sports broadcasting.
“Our partnership with Lumen is driving advancements in live production, content delivery, and fan engagement,” said Molinari. “It’s enhancing our efficiency and reinforcing Pac-12 Enterprises as a leader in sports media innovation.”
Looking ahead, Molinari sees the relationship continuing to grow: “As we both continue to stay innovative, I see this as a very long-term relationship.”
From a crisis of identity to a catalyst for innovation, Pac-12 Enterprises has proven that with the right partner, even the most daunting challenges can become defining moments.
To learn more about Pac-12 Enterprise’s transformation, read the full customer success story.
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