The Big 10 and the Pac-12 have been working together in one way or another since 1949, though the Pac-12 has undergone several name changes along the way.

The primary way in which they have worked together is by having a tie-in contract with the Rose Bowl for the champions of each conference to play in the traditional New Year's Day game. Teams from the two conference's have played in the Rose Bowl 62 times.

On Dec. 28 the two conferences announced that they will be working together in all new ways starting with the 2012 season. The conferences will cross promote each other on their own television networks, and work together to cross schedule non-conference games. The new agreement extends beyond the athletic realm, setting up cultural and academic exchanges between the 24 institutions that encompass the two conferences.

The Big 10 has had the BTN network on the air for four years, the Pac-12 will launch its own network in Aug.

"It's sort of in lieu of what some other people are doing (with expansion)," Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said in a statement.

"Our idea is you can't stand still. You have to build in an environment where people are competing for attention, where they're competing to have the best competitive assets and to present themselves in the best way. I think both of us believe … this is the most constructive way for us to do that."

By 2017 each football team in both conferences will have at least one non-conference game against the other conference. The schedules have to wait until then due to contracts already in place for games with other schools.

Basketball and football are the primary sports involved. It is being considered that some of the games will be nationally hyped up, and potentially played in surrounding NFL and NBA arenas to allow for extra ticket sales and promotional deals to be struck.