ESPN Touts the Speed of Live

05.17.2016

Kicking off day two of network upfronts, ESPN kept the Hamilton love coming, opening and closing their with performances by stars Leslie Odom and Daveed Diggs (video above).

This served to book-end ESPN's message: that the live element of their programming is what gives them an edge over the rest of TV.

"Live performance, like sports, makes our hearts beat faster," ESPN President, global sales and marketing, Ed Erhardt said, according to Deadline. "This is the universal power of live. It causes all of us to reconsider things we thought we knew. [Hamilton] has been called revolutionary. And it has caused ongoing debate about what is and is not working. That's why it's time to challenge, rethink and reconsider how we market, how we measure, how we engage our customers. ESPN embraces this revolution."

Change is in the air at ESPN, who have seen ubiquitous screen presences like Skip Bayless, Curt Schilling, Mike Tirico and Bill Simmons depart or get shown the door in recent years.

Sean McDonough, who's replacing Mike Tirico in the Monday Night Football booth, wasn't the only one to spread the ESPN gospel. Sports stars like Brett Favre, Bryce Harper, Chris Paul and Noah Syndergaard were in attendance.

Erhardt and company were excited to announce the launch of "The Undefeated," a new ESPN website. At 7 a.m. ET on Tuesday, the network unleashed a roadblock on every U.S.-based network, all of which played The Undefeated video.

That's a fitting name for the network in at least one respect, as a sheepish Scott Van Pelt came onstage to announce that his midnight Sports Center audience includes more men between 18 and 34 than Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon or James Corden.

"We beat them all, and I'm as shocked as you are," said midnight Sports Center host Scott Van Pelt, according to Variety.

ESPN reiterated its focus on the "uncounted" audience in the ratings (from communal settings such as bars, restaurants and gyms where ESPN is a staple). In 2017, Nielsen adds Out of Home to its ratings, but ESPN is taking matters into their own hands.

"It's not enough to simply say we're ubiquitous," said Erhardt, according to Deadline. "That's why we're investing in measuring the unmeasured. To give you more confidence. Confidence in a world of viewability concerns and commercial clutter."

ESPN is banking on counting a bunch of people when it comes to the continuation of their Emmy-winning 30 for 30 series.

The timely OJ: Made In America is the first 30 for 30 documentary event, with Part 1 premiering June 11 on ABC, followed by encore performances starting on June 14 on ESPN. A new trailer for the event drummed up hype even further for the project.

The next installment in the 30 for 30 series is "Doc & Darryl," premiering July 14 at 9 PM ET on ESPN. Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio direct the episode, which chronicles the tumultuous lives of New York Mets stars Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry.

The network announced its annual College Football Opening Weekend kick-off with a triple header on both ESPN and ABC on Saturday, September 3, with primetime games following on Sunday, September 4, and Monday, September 5.

ESPN also introduced LiveConnect, a new product for advertisers that uses audiences' emotions to help determine what ads will 'connect' best with fans. It's clear that ESPN wanted to make a big splash during its upfront, given cord-cutting concerns. Even without announcing an OTT streaming service (and indeed, rejecting the notion), ESPN may have staved off doubters for a day thanks to the excitement delivered by Hamilton live.

As ESPN president John Skipper put it, according to Adweek: "We think we still have a little swagger."

The swagger didn't end with the upfront, as ESPN quickly switched gears to focus on tonight's NBA Draft Lottery.