ESPN Goals app passes 1m downloads

ESPN's mobile application offering near-live video clips of Premier League goals passed one million UK downloads last weekend, as the service benefited from going free in August.

Users of ESPN Goals, the app which utilises ESPN's three-year mobile rights deal to every league goal each season, have registered 50m page views in just two months, and logged more than 61.3m minutes on the service.

ESPN Goals offers match previews, live scores, interviews and roundups, along with video alerts when a goal has been scored. It is available for free via Apple iTunes, the Android Market, Nokia's OVI Store, BlackBerry App World and Windows Phone Marketplace.

The app has been significantly boosted by ESPN's decision to shift it from a monthly subscription to an advertising-supported model in August. Between August 8 and September 8, ESPN Goals was the most downloaded free app on iPhones in the UK, and the 10th most popular across all genres. It was also the second most downloaded free sports app on Android.

Tom Gleeson, the vice president of digital media at ESPN International, said: "ESPN Goals has established a popular brand and built a broad user base with fans by demonstrating its ability to connect fans with Premier League football on the move.

"The app reflects our approach to bring fans multi-screen access to football, which is something we will continue to enhance as our business grows in the UK."

ESPN charged users £3.99 per month to access the video clips service when ESPN Goals launched in autumn 2010, but slashed the price by half in February this year and then made the app totally free in August.

The service is now funded by advertising and ESPN has struck new deals with Electronics Arts, Continental Tyres and Mentholatum. The brands will run short pre-roll ads before video clips, as well as advertise on ESPN's network of websites.

Alan Fagan, the group director of advertising & sponsorship sales, at ESPN (EMEA), said: "These deals demonstrate the unique appeal of ESPN Goals to a wide range of leading brands.

"ESPN has a passion for serving fans and a world-class ability to deliver value and precision to advertisers, connecting them with football fans whether it is on the TV screen or mobile device."