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Enertainment Sports Programming Network is founded
ESPN Inc.ESPN, Inc. was the brainchild of Bill Rasmussen, an unemployed sports announcer. In the spring of 1978 Rasmussen was fired by the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association as its communications director and play-by-play announcer. He began looking for a way to broadcast University of Connecticut basketball games through cable television operators in the state. At the time, satellite technology was a relatively new way of transmitting programming to cable operators. RCA had an underused -
ESPN begins broadcasting
First Sportscenter BroadcastESPN began broadcasting in September 1979 with limited airtime during the week and 24-hour coverage on the weekends. The company had signed up 625 cable system affiliates, reaching more than one million of a total of 20 million households that had cable at that time. Its first televised event was a slow-pitch world series softball game between the Milwaukee Schlitzes and the Kentucky Bourbons. ESPN's first sponsor was Anheuser-Busch, which purchased $1.4 million worth of advertising--a record fo -
ESPN begins broadcasting 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
History of ESPN incESPN's early financing came from Getty Oil, which invested $10 million in the company in 1979 for a controlling interest. Getty hired Chet Simmons, president of NBC Sports, to run ESPN. After seeing its financing rise to $25 million with no profits in sight, Getty hired management consultant McKinsey & Co. to assess ESPN's future. McKinsey's lead consultant on the project was -
ABC, Inc. acquires ESPN
1984 ABC's Wide World of Sports OpeningIn January 1984 ABC, Inc. bought a 15 percent stake in the company, then acquired control of the company six months later. The acquisition of ESPN by ABC put the sports network on firmer financial footing and provided a foundation for its phenomenal growth in the coming years.
When college football on television was deregulated through a court decision in 1984, ESPN began broadcasting Thursday and Saturday night games. These college football broadcasts helped improve the image of ESPN's audience -
Capital Cities/ABC, Inc.
Thomas S Murphy, Founder of Capital CitiesCapital Cities Communications, Inc. acquires ABC and becomes Capital Cities/ABC, Inc. In 1985, Capital Cities became the minnow that swallowed the whale when it announced that it was merging with the highly visible ABC. At the time this was the largest merger of media companies in history. Capital Cities/ABC reclaimed this record about ten years later when it merged with the Disney Company. -
ESPN begins broadcasting National Football League games.
Two months later the National Football League awarded ESPN its first-ever package of games to be broadcast on cable television, which began in August 1987 with the televised broadcast of the inaugural game at the Miami Dolphins' Joe Robbie Stadium against the Chicago Bears. The four-year contract was renewed for 1990-93 at a cost of about $450 million to ESPN. In addition, ABC-TV paid about $900 million for its package of Monday night and weekend games. -
ESPN begins broadcasting Major League Baseball games
On January 5, 1989, Major League Baseball signed a $400 million deal with ESPN, who would show over 175 games beginning in 1990. For the next four years, ESPN would televise six games a week (Sunday, Wednesday Night Baseball, doubleheaders on Tuesdays and Fridays, plus holidays). -
ESPN expands its Brand
ESPN Corporate InformationThe Hearst Corporation acquires a 20 percent interest in ESPN from RJR Nabisco Inc. ESPN began the 1990s with a new president and CEO, when Steve Bornstein replaced Roger Werner. Werner, the former McKinsey & Co. consultant, was ESPN's president and CEO from 1988 to 1999. He left ESPN to become president and CEO of Daniels & Associates Inc., which owned a wide range of sports properties. Bornstein was formerly ESPN's executive vice-president in charge of programming and production and the networ -
ESPN Radio Network is launched
ESPN Radio Network is launched in conjunction with the ABC Radio Network.The brand expansion began in 1991 with the launch of ESPN Radio Network in conjunction with the ABC Radio Network. ESPN Radio began with 16 hours of programming per week and was offered to 200 radio stations. ABC Radio launched Sportsradio ESPN. While not the first national sports talk network, Sportsradio ESPN quickly became the most popular and grew quickly. That network, now known as ESPN Radio, is still in operation. -
ESPN2 begins transmission
ESPN, Inc In 1993 ESPN introduced a second cable network, ESPN2, which began transmission on October 1, 1993. Billed as an alternative sports network, ESPN2 was expected to reach a younger demographic than ESPN. Its initial programming included college basketball games, arena football, volleyball, motor racing events, fitness programs, soccer, karate, kickboxing, and other sports, as well as two sports and talk shows. When ESPN2 was launched, it reached about nine million homes, compared to 61.7 million -
Walt Disney Company acquires Capital Cities/ABC, Inc
Disney's Stunning Deal to Buy ABCIn mid-1995 Walt Disney Company acquired ESPN's parent company, Capital Cities/ABC, giving Disney an 80 percent interest in ESPN and full control of its operations. The Hearst Corporation, a passive investor in ESPN, retained the 20 percent interest in ESPN it had purchased from RJR Nabisco Inc. in 1990 for an estimated $170 million. In April 1996 Disney announced plans to combine ESPN and ABC Sports into a single operating unit under the control of Steve Bornstein. Although Bornstein became pre -
ESPN purchases the Classic Sports Network
ESPN gained another cable sports network in September 1997 with the purchase of the Classic Sports Network (CSN), an independently owned cable service that broadcast classic sporting events from the past. The Classic Sports Network is now called ESPN Classic. While financial terms were not disclosed, it was reported that Disney paid between $150 million and $200 million. At the time of the acquisition CSN had about 11 million subscribers and was expected to increase. -
ESPN: The Magazine is launched
ESPN launched ESPN: The Magazine in 1998 under the direction of John Skipper, president of Disney Publishing. Previously ESPN's only presence in print was Total Sports, an irregularly published magazine produced in association with Hearst. In its first year of existence, ESPN: The Magazine achieved a circulation of 400,000 and ranked second behind Sports Illustrated in number of advertising pages. Its target audience was males in their 20s. -
ESPN uses a Skycam
History of ESPNIn 1998, ESPN also began utilizing a "Skycam" during their NHL broadcasts, later expanding to baseball, basketball, and football games. Skycam is the trademarked brandname of a patented, computer-controlled, stabilized, cable-suspended camera system. The system, similar to Steadicam, but maneuvered through three dimensions in the open space over a playing area of a stadium or arena by computer-controlled cable-drive system, is responsible for bringing video game-like camera angles to television -
ESPN HD is Introduced
ESPN launched its 720p high-definition simulcast, originally branded as ESPNHD, on March 20, 2003. ESPN is one of the few networks with an all-digital infrastructure. ESPN and all of ABC and Disney's cable networks use the 720p HD line standard because ABC executives proposed a progressive scan signal that resolves fluid and high speed motion in sports better, particularly during slow motion replays. -
ESPN Deportes
ESPN Deportes Top TenESPN Deportes (ESPN Sports) is a cable television and radio network dedicated to broadcasting sports-related programming 24 hours a day to the Spanish-speaking community in the United States. The channel broadcasts transmissions made in Mexico City and in Bristol, Connecticut. In 2007, the network began a daily English segment on the late edition of its American parent's SportsCenter, ESPN Deportes started transmitting in High Definition on April 16, 2011. -
ESPN Mobile TV
ESPN Mobile TVESPN Mobile LiveESPN announces that ESPN Mobile TV – its first channel on a wireless service – will be available on MediaFLO’s new mobile entertainment service. ESPN Mobile or ESPN MPV is actually a service related to sports information and is based on cellular phone. It is offered by ESPN Verizon Wireless. After it was launched for the second time in May 2007, it has been carried on Verizon Wireless Network. It was earlier famous as Mobile ESPN and was a Mobile Virtual Network Operator(MVNO) and run by the Dis -
ESPN 3D
ESPN 3D is HereOn January 5, 2010, ESPN announced that it would launch a new 3D television channel, ESPN 3D. The network launched on June 11, 2010, with coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. During its first year, ESPN projected that it would air around 100 events in 3D within its first year, including the Summer X Games and the 2011 BCS National Championship Game.
Originally, ESPN 3D only aired simulcasts of 3D events from other ESPN channels, but on February 14, 2011, the network switched to a 24 hour format
