Starting on Oct. 25, Time Warner Cable customers will be able to watch their favorite ESPN channels on their computers at no additional cost.
ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will be available through a new authenticated service that verifies the viewer is a Time Warner Cable customer.
As part of ESPN’s plan to shift to “TV Everywhere,” there will be fewer videos available on ESPN.com for non-Time Warner customers.
“We believe this ‘TV Everywhere’ model is going to be what the industry at large is going to pursue,” said John Kosner, general manager of digital media at ESPN. “We’re going to make similar deals with lots of distributors.”
Last month, Walt Disney Co. and Time Warner reached a new deal to keep their channels on the cable giant. As part of the deal, ESPN3.com would also be made available to Time Warner Cable customers.
Verizon’s FiOS customers will also gain online access to the ESPN Networks in the upcoming months.
If you’re a DirecTV customer like me, this has to sting a little bit, but not enough to consider switching back to cable.