Pac-12 Networks Leaving Current San Francisco Broadcast Center as Part of Conference’s Remote-Work Shift

Network ops will relocate to a new production facility after its lease expires in June 2023

The Pac-12 Conference has announced plans to move to an ongoing flexible and remote work environment, which will result in Pac-12 Networks’ departing its current San Francisco broadcast facility. According to the announcement, the Pac-12 will continue to support and invest in its broadcast and content production, including relocating to a new production facility after the end of the conference’s current lease in June 2023. The location for the new production facility has not yet been determined.

Pac-12 Networks’ San Francisco-based studio has served as the home for live coverage since the broadcaster’s launch in 2012.

The conference’s decision to shift to a remote-work environment was approved unanimously by the Pac-12 board of directors. According to the announcement, the move is designed to provide Pac-12 staff with the benefits of work flexibility while also envisioning regular opportunities for employees to come together in person within the Pac-12 geographic footprint, including at Pac-12 campuses to foster greater collaboration with member universities. The conference also believes the move will produce cost savings that will deliver more revenue back to member universities to support student-athletes.

“The Pac-12 is committed to best supporting our employees by providing a work environment that accommodates today’s modern world and gives our employees maximum flexibility to live and work where they want, while still fostering collaboration among staff and our valued member institutions,” says Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff. “We are also committed to ongoing best-in-class production of Pac-12 events. We are excited for what this new remote and flexible work environment can do to support our employees and for the new ways it will allow us to reinvest in our member universities so that they can best support student-athletes.”

Upon launching in 2012, Pac-12 Networks instantly established itself as a pioneer in remote-production techniques. Its groundbreaking Multicam production model was a precursor of the remote-production revolution the industry has experienced in recent years, and the centralized-production model has allowed Pac-12 Networks to produce thousands of live events from its San Francisco headquarters for a fraction of the cost of traditional production. The conference-owned network recently launched the Software Defined Production (SDP) model. The SDP ecosystem is built on vMix live-production software and tied together via extensive NDI IP connectivity. The model is already in full operation, and Pac-12 Networks is on pace for 225 productions this year and is looking to expand to 400+ productions next season.