Esther D’Amico
On the heels of confirming plans to launch ESPN as a stand-alone streaming service, the Walt Disney Company launched a sports betting app in its bid to reach even more fans.
The betting app, named ESPN BET, is available in 17 states — Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.
“Our primary focus is always to serve sports fans and we know they want both betting content and the ability to place bets with less friction from within our products,” ESPN Chair Jimmy Pitaro said earlier this year in announcing plans for the launch with online sports betting firm PENN Entertainment.
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The ESPN BET site is offering several promotions for signing up. You must be 21 or older to join and wager on the site.
The move follows news that the Walt Disney Company plans to launch ESPN as a standalone streaming service no later than 2025, putting to rest long-running rumors on the timing.
"We've not said specifically what date. We were targeting 2025," CEO Bob Iger said during a November 8 CNBC interview. "It won't be later than that."
The streaming service will be available on an a-la-carte basis, Iger told investors on the company's same day earnings call. He did not provide many details but said the company would also continue to offer ESPN as a bundle with its Disney Plus and Hulu Plus subscriptions.
The best deal in streaming?
Given that many streaming services have raised prices in recent months, you might be looking for some alternatives. One recently launched option that is free comes from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It's new NASA+ is an ad-free and family friendly service that, as NASA puts it, places “space on demand and at your fingertips."
For more ideas, tips and tricks to save on your streaming needs, check out Kiplinger’s report on how to save on streaming services and find streaming deals.
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