Re-Branded ESPN Action Sports Network to Launch in Fall

ESPN has announced a re-branding of its online home
for action sports. The site will become ESPN Action Sports this fall
as part of a new multimedia initiative that will also mark the launch
of the ESPN Action Sports Network – a group of interconnected sites,
including sport-specific vertical sites from ESPN (ex: ESPN Skate) and
other premiere action sports destinations such as Surfline.com,
Vans.com, Active Ride Shop and more. The new network of sites, with
ESPN Action Sports as its central hub, will create multiple drop in
points for action sports participants and enthusiasts, with the mission
of developing the best, deepest, most useful network of action sports
content and community anywhere.
“ESPN Action Sports signifies an ongoing
focus to bringing ESPN.com’s standard of excellence and comprehensive
coverage to the action sports arena,” says Dave Finger, senior
director, action sports, ESPN Digital Media. “We have been building
towards this vision for more than a year – piece by piece – and this
marks a new starting point for the next stage in the evolution of what
our digital media assets will deliver to athletes and enthusiasts
around the globe.”
Adds Rick Alessandri, senior vice
president and managing director, X Games franchise, “Action sports are
defined by progression – by constant change and advancement. With this
new multiplatform initiative, ESPN will advance its action sports
presence to a new level. Combined with the importance of X Games as the
pre-eminent action sports competitions, our commitment to action sports
will be stronger than ever.”
ESPN Action Sports and its network of
sites will expand upon the progress EXPN.com already made in
creating a 24/7/365 home for action sport news, lifestyle and event
coverage across digital media. In the 12 months since beginning its
increased focus on content, ESPN has already seen strong results in
traffic to action sports content, with unique computers up 37% and page
views up 21% when comparing 2008 year-to-date with the same period last
year.
To continue that growth, ESPN Action
Sports sites will place a premium on top-quality, authentic, daily
coverage of the entire action sports landscape. This dedication to
leading content will take many forms, including video, social media, mobile, audio and photography.