ESPN+ OTT Service Will Launch April 12, Include Live MLB, NHL, MLS Games

ESPN OTT Service Will Launch April 12, Include Live MLB, NHL, MLS Games The $4.99/month direct-to-consumer platform will also feature boxing, college sports, PGA golf, Grand Slam tennis, and more By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor

Monday, April 2, 2018 - 11:52 am

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ESPN unveiled specifics for its long-expected direct-to-consumer OTT service, ESPN , today. The subscription streaming service will launch on April 12 at a cost of $4.99/month (or $49.99/year) and will be an integrated part of a redesigned ESPN App that will serve as the company's all-in-one digital sports platform; it will also be available through ESPN.com.

Live sports content on ESPN will include more than 180 MLB games this season (a game per day), more than 180 NHL games (a game per day), Top Rank Boxing fights, more than 250 MLS games, thousands of college sports events across nearly two dozen conferences (including football this fall), 31 PGA TOUR events, Grand Slam tennis (Wimbledon, US Open, Australian Open), and hundreds of rugby and cricket matches.

Subscribers will also be able to purchase the entire MLB.TV out-of-market package via ESPN and view the games within the ESPN App. MLB.TV will cost an additional $24.99 per month. Beginning with the 2018-19 NHL season, fans will be able to purchase the entire NHL.TV out-of-market package as well.

The reimagined ESPN App will offer an increasingly personalized one-stop digital destination on mobile and digital living-room platforms: ESPN , authenticated live streaming of ESPN's eight U.S. networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, SEC Network, Longhorn Network), and ESPN Audio live and on-demand content (including ESPN Radio streaming and podcasts). More details about ESPN and the redesigned ESPN App - including further details about live sports, original, and on-demand programming - will be announced ahead of launch.

ESPN was built on a belief in innovation and the powerful connection between sports and a remarkable array of fans, said James Pitaro, president, ESPN/co-chair, Disney Media Networks, in the announcement. That same belief is at the heart of ESPN and the new ESPN App. With ESPN , fans have access to thousands more live games, world-class original programs, and on-demand sports content, all at a great price. They will get all of that as part of a completely reimagined, increasingly personalized ESPN App that provides easy, one-stop access to everything ESPN offers.

ESPN is the first direct-to-consumer service offering from Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International, the multiplatform media, technology, and distribution organization for content created by Disney's Media Networks and Studio Entertainment groups. A Disney-branded direct-to-consumer service, offering subscription video-on-demand viewing of Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm movies along with a host of exclusive content, will launch in late 2019. Both streaming services are powered by BAMTECH, a unit of Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International.

The launch of ESPN marks the beginning of an exciting new era of innovation for our media businesses, one defined by an increasingly direct and personal relationship with consumers, said Kevin Mayer, chairman, Direct-to-Consumer and International, The Walt Disney Co. This new product reflects our direct-to-consumer strategy focused on combining our beloved brands with our proprietary, industry-leading technology to give users unparalleled access to our world-class content.

The ESPN programming lineup will be built on four key pillars of content: thousands of live sports events, original shows and films, exclusive studio programs, and an on-demand library.

ESPN will connect fans directly to sports they love wherever and whenever they want, said Michael Paull, president, BAMTECH Media. Together, BAMTECH's industry-leading direct-to-consumer video platform and capabilities combined with ESPN's unmatched sports content will deliver fans an all-new streaming experience with exciting product features built for watching incredible live and on-demand sports.

Among the thousands of live sports events confirmed to stream on ESPN are:

MLB - MORE THAN 180 GAMES; A GAME PER DAY THROUGHOUT SEASON: ESPN will feature a game each day, seven days per week, throughout the regular season, representing every MLB team (blackouts apply).

NHL - MORE THAN 180 GAMES; GAME OF THE DAY THROUGHOUT REGULAR SEASON: Beginning with the 2018-19 NHL season, subscribers will get a daily game throughout the regular season (in keeping with the league schedule); blackouts apply.

BOXING - YEAR-ROUND SCHEDULE, INCLUDES EXCLUSIVE KHAN VS. LO GRECO BOUT: ESPN is a key part of ESPN's multiplatform Top Rank Boxing on ESPN agreement and will feature boxing throughout the year, with a selection of exclusive main-event fights beginning with the April 21 Amir Khan vs. Phil Lo Greco bout in Liverpool, UK. In addition, ESPN will feature undercard fights throughout the year from Top Rank on ESPN events, re-airs of all Top Rank on ESPN and PPV events and a library of legendary fights from the Top Rank and ESPN Big Fights archives.

MLS - MORE THAN 250 GAMES: At launch, an ESPN subscription will provide exclusive access to the entire MLS Live out-of-market schedule (blackouts apply). Before launch, fans can access free out-of-market games streaming live on MLSsoccer.com and the MLS App. Additionally, ESPN will be the exclusive local-market home for the Chicago Fire, bringing 27 Fire matches to fans in Chicago.

COLLEGE SPORTS - THOUSANDS OF GAMES AND EVENTS, MULTIPLE SPORTS, ACROSS NEARLY TWO DOZEN CONFERENCES: The ESPN lineup will feature thousands of live sports events - football, basketball, baseball, softball, soccer, track and field, gymnastics, swimming and diving, lacrosse, wrestling

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2018/04/02/espn-ott-service-will-launch-ap...
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