ESPN.com & MSN Team Up.

MSN and ESPN.com announced an agreement to deliver to consumers access to ESPN’s online sports content on the Web through the MSN network of Internet services. ESPN.com (http://espn.com/) will be the exclusive sports content provider for the MSN sports channel (http://sports.msn.com/) and will have preferred positioning on the MSN home page. ESPN.com’s sports content will be uniquely integrated with MSN and will carry MSN branding and links throughout the ESPN.com site.

Consumers can move with a single click from ESPN.com’s comprehensive sports news and information, scores, highlights and fantasy games to their MSN Hotmail Web-based e-mail service, and then back to ESPN.com. ESPN.com sports news and information can be placed on a user’s personalized MSN home page and eventually will be available via MSN Mobile.
“Working with an online leader such as MSN to make our content available exclusively to its vast audience is invaluable to our continued growth and leadership with fans, the industry and the advertising community,” said John Skipper, senior vice president and general manager of ESPN.com. “Our experience proves that in addition to audience reach, working with multiple media properties provides a great benefit to advertisers. Adding MSN to the mix will only enhance the opportunities for both sides.”

“The combination of ESPN.com content and leading MSN services is a home run for all of our customers,” said Yusuf Mehdi, vice president of MSN at Microsoft Corp. “The great brand awareness and popularity of ESPN coupled with MSN technology expertise will provide a platform for marketers to target an incredibly active and valuable segment of Internet customers.”
ESPN.com will work with MSN on a comprehensive effort to deliver to marketers innovative solutions for reaching a targeted segment of online consumers across both MSN and ESPN.com.