Students living in university residence halls will be able to watch all games available on the new Big Ten Network, regardless of whether Charter Communications reaches a deal with the network by its Aug. 30 debut. BTN will broadcast athletic events otherwise unavailable on basic cable programming. The University of Wisconsin has reached a deal with the network that allows residence halls to pick up and distribute its signal. “It will be on channel 116, and it should be available about Sept. 1, even though the network itself rolls out on Aug. 30,” UW spokesperson Dennis Chaptman said. “I think there are some technical issues that have to be solved.” Chaptman said the university thinks carrying this channel in residence halls is important for students — not only for the sports events, but also because the university has been allotted 60 broadcast hours per year to highlight UW. “We’re going to be working with the campus to produce programming that will be appealing to a wide audience,” Chaptman said, adding programs would likely focus on UW’s research and academic breakthroughs, as well as student achievements. For community members and UW students not living in residence halls, it remains unclear if BTN will be available as part of a cable package through the main local provider, Charter Communications. "Nothing has changed as far as reaching an agreement, but I have been informed that the two sides have spoken several times over the last couple weeks,” said John Miller, director of communications for Charter. “At least there is dialogue that is being exchanged between the two entities." Miller said the main issue blocking an agreement is BTN’s desire for the service to go to all basic cable subscribers — Charter would prefer the service only goes to those who specifically want it. Elizabeth Conlisk, vice president of communications for BTN, said that is the only point on which the network is “firm and committed.” "We believe that the content that will be on the Big Ten Network will be relevant for all the people of Wisconsin, so therefore we believe that this network should be included in the 70 or so channels you get as part of your expanded basic service in Madison,” Conlisk said. But Miller said Charter is concerned about the higher cost of carrying the network compared with other channels carried on basic cable. “We don’t want to have to pass that high cost per customer on to all customers,” Miller said. “We think that’s a reasonable request.” Conlisk said BTN is willing to negotiate on the price of the network, but estimated it would likely cost Charter $13 per year per customer. “They do not have to automatically pass those costs on to consumers," Conlisk said. "That’s up to Charter — the Big Ten Network does not cost consumers anything." Conlisk added Charter would like customers to upgrade to digital and then pay an additional fee for a sports tier. BTN is designed to air Big Ten games in a wide variety of sports. The first game-time coverage starts Sept. 1 with football.