ESPN Gets Ready to Launch Its First Web Video Subscription Service

Sources say the Disney-owned cable giant wants to sell U.S. viewers live digital access to the ICC Cricket World Cup, which begins in February. The tournament, held every four years, is one of the world’s biggest sporting events. [...] ESPN purchased the U.S. rights to the tournament in 2011. At the time, it suggested it would stream the games via ESPN3, the online-only sports channel it later folded into its WatchESPN service, which is restricted to viewers who are already getting ESPN as part of a pay-TV package. Up until now, ESPN has used streaming sports as a way to provide additional value for pay-TV subscribers. But ESPN has recently started talking out loud about its plans to sell standalone digital subscriptions. - Peter Kafka,Re/code [via/web:http://streaming-tv.us]