Chorus ntl and ESPN announce new carriage deal

ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN America and ESPN Classic to be available to Chorus ntl customers

Ireland, August 14th 2009 – Chorus ntl and ESPN today announced a deal to make the new ESPN sports channel part of the Chorus ntl offering to customers in Ireland.  From today ESPN, which will broadcast 46 Barclay’s Premier League games exclusively Live this season and 30  Clydesdale Bank Premier League football, will be available in Standard Definition and High Definition.

Customers will also be able to watch a wide range of additional football coverage on ESPN, including Live Serie A, German Bundesliga, Dutch Eredivisie, Portuguese Liga, Russian Premier League and Major League Soccer from the US.  Other sports content includes Ultimate Fighting Championship, Live Top 14 Orange French Rugby, Australian Rules Football and additional live and exclusive sports coverage from around the world.

In addition to ESPN, Chorus ntl subscribers will also be able to enjoy ESPN Classic, featuring the greatest moments of UK and European sport and ESPN America, which brings sports fans in Ireland the best live sporting action from North America.

Dedicated sports fans who already subscribe to a combination of either Sky Sports or Setanta through Chorus ntl will get ESPN and ESPN America for an additional €10 per month or from €15 per month for new customers.  ESPN HD will be available to subscribers to Chorus ntl’s new HD service. ESPN Classic will be available as part of the Max package. 

Simon Kelehan, Head of TV for Chorus ntl said:

“We are delighted to offer ESPN to our Irish customer base and ESPN HD is a core element of our new HD service.  Irish viewers have always had a keen interest in English premiership football and we’re delighted that ESPN brings a range of new Live sports to Irish viewers.”

Lynne Frank, Managing Director for ESPN in Europe, Middle East and Africa said:

“We are delighted to team with Chorus ntl to offer their customers ESPN’s exciting range of Premier League football, Clydesdale Bank Premier League and the best in international and US sports in SD and HD.  ESPN will be complemented by ESPN America and ESPN Classic, thereby serving a diverse group of sports fans.  ESPN is set to be must-have for fans in Ireland.”

About UPC

UPC is the parent company of Chorus ntl and is the European division of Liberty Global, Inc., the world’s leading international cable operator. UPC brings television, broadband internet and telephone services to approximately 9 million customers throughout 9 European countries. The company is driven by its vision that 'this amazing but often complex digital world should be for everyone'. UPC's 800 employees throughout Ireland strive to make this happen by bringing simplicity and a real human touch to everything they do.  To find out more about us - please visit www.upc.ie

About ESPN

Based in Bristol, Conn., ESPN, Inc. is the world’s leading multinational, multimedia sports entertainment company featuring a portfolio of over 50 multimedia sports assets.  ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc., which is an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company.  The Hearst Corporation holds a 20 percent interest in ESPN. 

ESPN International has grown to include ownership – in whole or in part – of over 45 television networks outside of the United States, as well as a variety of brand extension businesses, which allow ESPN to reach fans in 200 countries and territories.  In the UK, ESPN now includes a portfolio of television and digital brands including ESPN Classic, ESPN America, ESPNcricinfo.com, ESPNscrum.com, ESPNsoccernet.com, ESPN360,com and Racing-live.com.

On 22 June, ESPN was awarded the exclusive rights to 46 Live Barclays Premier League matches in the 2009-10 Season and 23 matches a season from 2010-2013.  ESPN has also been awarded exclusive live rights to Clydesdale Bank Premier League games for the next five seasons, showing 30 live games each season across the UK and Ireland, starting with the

2009-10 campaign this August and games from the German, Dutch, Russian and Portuguese national football leagues.  ESPN has also secured multiyear UK and Ireland rights to air the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Top 14 Orange (French Rugby Championship) and the Australian Football League (AFL).