Whenever the Longhorn Sports Network is up and running, UT would appreciate it if you would use Texas Longhorns Energy to power up your HDTV.
UT has entered into a 6-year agreement with Dallas-based Branded Retail Energy to use the Longhorn brand to sell consumers electricity and natural gas in deregulated markets. The program will be promoted via in-stadium signage, program ads, as well as Web, TV and radio advertising.
UT will receive a cut from every new energy account, while customers will get incentives such as Longhorn merchandise and ticket discounts.
Branded Energy CEO Jason Helms says that Texas Longhorns Energy will be 100% renewable, and added that Texas was a natural to be the first University to allign with an energy producer.
"Everyone loves their college experience or at least has a favorite college, and here UT is at the top of the heap, so that’s where we started," said Helms.
The Longhorns probably will not be the only major program to look at synergy energy deals. Fourteen other states are have some form of dergulated energy, including such Big 10 states as Illinois, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
Deregulated energy in Texas is a crowded niche with over 50 competitors already in the marketplace, but Bevo has decided to get into the electric power supply business and will be advertising this new service in DKR this fall.
You just won't be able to buy it here since Austin is not deregulated.