

Live sports coverage has been one of the last bastions of hope for traditional cable companies as more and more people are making the switch to online platforms like Hulu and Netflix, but now it looks like that could soon change. According to a new report by The Information, the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) may soon take a “baby step” toward offering its own subscription-based streaming service, finally giving cord cutting sports fans the excuse to ditch cable forever.
In its report, The Information said that a source with knowledge of ESPN’s plans claims that the network will soon be offering a streaming package that will broadcast live sporting events online. Unfortunately, the source said that this will not include premium sports like the NBA or NFL, at least not at first, but the package will offer more niche sports and possibly college events.
ESPN, which is owned by the Walt Disney Company, has been steadily growing more tech savvy in recent years, and this would not be the first time it has offered live sports coverage online. Last year, ESPN allowed cricket fans to pay $100 to watch a stream the Cricket World Cup.
The network has also partnered with Blizzard Entertainment for the past two years to air coverage of its “Heroes of the Dorm” esports tournament. The network even launched its own esports vertical earlier this year to cover the world of professional gaming.
Esports seems like a likely niche sport for ESPN’s new service to cover, especially given that its audience is already used to watching content online through platforms like Amazon’s Twitch. Of course, it is unclear whether that same audience would be willing to pay for a subscription service to view content that has previously been available for free online.
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