Bangalore: Multi Screen Media (MSM) and ESPN have entered a long-term agreement to create co-branded TV and digital platforms serving sports fans in India and the Indian subcontinent.
The two companies will bring new offerings to Indian sports fans, including the new Sony ESPN sports channel and a new multisport website and app. MSM’s existing Sony KIX sports channel will be rebranded as Sony ESPN, and the two companies will launch other new channels in the upcoming months. Along with Sony SIX, all of the channels will offer a sports lineup to sports fans.
In collaboration with MSM, ESPN is set to roll out a co-branded localized multisport website and app, which will provide coverage of cricket, football, tennis, the NBA, badminton, field hockey and more. MSM’s Sony LIV will also benefit from the collaboration, increasing its current sports offerings. ESPNcricinfo, a digital destination for cricket in India and globally, will continue to deliver comprehensive coverage and will complement and cross-promote the new digital properties and sports channels.
NP Singh, the CEO of Multi Screen Media, remarked, “Our partnership with ESPN is just what the sports aficionado has been waiting for. Stylized, insightful sports content presented by the best sportscasters in the business. For consumers in India and the subcontinent, sports television viewing will change dramatically since they will soon have access not only to more content but also the widest array of sports lineup, ever available. MSM’s association with ESPN is holistic and embraces both television and digital formats. Not only are we about to set the frontiers in sports content and distribution but we will most likely set the trends as well. Going further, both companies will also explore collaboration on the development of other original sports programs.”
Russell Wolff, the executive VP and managing director at ESPN International, added: “ESPN’s focus around the world is simple: to serve sports fans. This exciting, long-term collaboration between ESPN and MSM will serve Indian sports fans with exceptional products, content and coverage through the combined strengths and expertise of our two companies, which each have a strong heritage of leadership and innovation in India. We are very excited to be working with Sony, one of the leading television channels in India, on the opportunities that lie ahead.”
Components of the collaboration require regulatory approval, for which the process is currently underway.
