NEW YORK – Monday night, at Twitter’s annual NewFront presentation, ESPN announced the creation of “ESPN Onsite,” a brand extension of ESPN’s existing Twitter live shows when on location at major sporting events. In addition to live video, these programs also feature a mix of clips and fan engagement opportunities such as polls and Twitter moments.
Senior Vice President, Social & Digital Content, ESPN, Ryan Spoon, and TJ Adeshola, Head of U.S. Sports Partnerships, Twitter, share more details.
What makes Onsite unique to ESPN and which shows will participate at launch?
Spoon: Onsite offers fans more of what they expect from ESPN on Twitter – and something only ESPN, with its brand and talent, can deliver: access. The success of our shows from the NFL Draft – with over 5.5 million live and on-demand views across the three days – is a great example of this, and over the next year, ESPN’s existing franchises like The College Football Show, Hoop Streams, Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, and MLS Countdown Live will stream live on location under the brand extension. Beyond these shows, ESPN will also add Onsite branding around other tent-pole events when they are on location.
What kind of success have you seen from ESPN’s existing live shows on Twitter to date and how do you envision “ESPN Onsite” growing those audiences?
Adeshola: There have been over 100 million views on ESPN LIVE content since our announcement at last year’s NewFront. The all-star programming lineup of Rankings Reactions, Hoop Streams, and The College Football Show has been a huge success. We know that audiences on Twitter are even more engaged around tent-pole sports events. As such, “ESPN Onsite” is a slam dunk way to grow the existing audience by tapping directly into the massive conversations around the biggest events in sports!
More information can be found in Twitter’s press release here.
