ESPN Broadband Strategy Onnie Bose Mark Hicken George

ESPN: Broadband Strategy Onnie Bose Mark Hicken George Hsin Shamus Prindiville

ESPN: A History z created in 1979 as then-unheard of 24 hour all-sports network z known to be a creative and innovative network, willing to take risks z continues to move into unproven markets with remarkable success y espn 2 added in 1993 y ESPNews added in 1996 y ESPNet Sportszone (now ESPN. com) launched in late 1994

ESPN Internet Ventures z Over 12 million unique impressions per day at ESPN. com z 22 million visits at associated sites (NASCAR, NFL, NBA, ABC Sports) z A mature player, “the worldwide leader”

Main Competitors CBS Sportsline The Sporting News CNN/SI Yahoo! Sports America Online

Looking Forward z Cannot rely solely on brand equity z Provide a “value-added experience” z Anticipate broadband online video delivery z Focus on strengths in sports analysis

Broadband its implications z The ability to transmit seamless voice, data, and video content z the Wall Street Journal (10/98) y“Web entertainment is about viewers manipulating the programming to entertain themselves, … The denizens of cyberspace don’t just want to watch the show - they want to be the show. ”

ESPN and the Sports Media Industry z Providing live game content is expensive ynearly $2 billion for NFL television rights yhighly competitive z News, commentary, and feature programming drives revenue y. Sports. Center, NFL Prime. Time, Baseball Tonight yanalysis is ESPN’s core competency yadvertising revenue for these programs are among the industry’s highest

Implications for ESPN z The cost of sports content is escalating ylarge network competition drives up costs z ESPN should focus on delivering cutting edge analysis, commentary, and interactivity instead of broadcasting content yin-line with ESPN’s history and competencies ykeeps in mind the implications of broadband the demand for compelling content

ESPN’s focus on analysis z Partnerships and alliances (co-opetition) with traditional sports broadcasting networks z Provide interactive media applications (Praja), fantasy leagues, and discussion forums z Video content from partners surrounded by ESPN’s interactive applications and analysis z Becoming the “Bloomberg of sports”

The Goals z. Short term: yleverage competency in sports analysis yinteractive service through traditional Internet connections z. Long term: yreal, live interactive television when broadband delivery becomes feasible and widely-available

The Product z. Streaming video content of game action (provided initially by ESPN or ABC Sports, and eventually by partnerships with networks) z. Surrounded by ESPN analysis and interactive content

Critical Issues Grid

Critical nodes in ESPN’s Hugin Model z Acceptance of new product by users z Ability to cross-brand content (from broadcasters) to ESPN site z Revenue model: subscription v. advertising

Hugin!

Conclusions z Broadband is inevitable--act early z Costs of going forward with the project are relatively negligible z In almost any case, the project will be successful z Natural step in ESPN’s evolution