Pac-10’s Larry Scott says new TV-rights deal will be in place soon

Pacific 10 Conference Commissioner Larry Scott said Friday that he expects to know by the end of the year whether the television rights to the 2011 Pac-12 football championship game will be sold separately or as part of a wide-ranging new television package.

Television rights for all sports in the soon-to-expand conference won’t be available until after contracts with Fox and ESPN/ABC expire at the end of next season. But the new football championship game that begins next season when Utah and Colorado join the conference is available for bidding.

Scott returned to California from New York on Friday. “I took the opportunity to meet with media partners,” he said. “All I can say vis a vis next year is that the championship game is available. We had an exclusive window to talk to ESPN and weigh whether or not to sell the rights for the 2011 [championship] game in transition.

“It’s possible we might partner with someone for the single game but it’s equally possible we’ll get more value in a strategic sense as part of the broader package.”

Scott said he hoped that by the middle of 2011 there would be a comprehensive new television package in place for the 12-team league, and he called the situation of having a single game available to sell for next season “a little awkward.”

“It’s very unusual to have one game to sell,” he said. “In the broad scheme it could be fantastic. We have one year of selling the game as the inaugural, the kickoff to the new conference. It will be a big event, the first championship game. It’s an event that could stand on its own. But it’s possible we’d get more value as part of the broader agreement.”

diane.pucin@latimes.com

twitter.com/mepucin