Will the schedule force Time Warner's hand?

So the last "Big" Cable company to not have a deal with the Big Ten Network is Time Warner. TWC had the same complaints/positions as Comcast did but a deal doesn't seem to be imminent. Why? you ask. There are other things going on at TWC. Time Warner Cable is on the "blocks" and could be sold at any time. Comcast are your interested? You have about 2 months to purchase them and get them integrated. Ok, that won't happen.

So what's next? Time Warner holds the most cable boxes in Mid-Southern Ohio. Which means there are going to be a lot of angry Buckeye fans if a deal isn't done before the end of August.

So what would motivate Time Warner to get a deal done soon? Customers complaining didn't seem to help last year. Maybe loss of revenue will do the trick. If a deal isn't done soon, Time Warner will lose a ton of households in Ohio to one of the dish providers.

The reason they will move? This little tidbit from the Mark Silverman, President of The Big Ten Network:

Silverman said the first three weekends of this season's football schedule should be announced sometime after July 1. Each of the 11 teams is guaranteed to be on the Big Ten Network at least once for a non-conference game and once for a conference match up.

Meaning football fans in Ohio will know two months in advance if their favorite Big Ten team falls on the network early in the season. They will also know that the rules state they have to be on during the Big Ten campaign as well. Two months advance = plenty of time to change providers. TWC is going to be sold anyway, why stick it out with them?

Good Luck Time Warner, the clock is ticking.......