ESPN's biggest competition might be you

At the IGNITION conference back in February 2011, John Kosner, a head hocho VP at ESPN, answered a question regarding their race with Yahoo! Sports:

They are worthy competition, but there's no other ESPN. And if you take a look at any sort of fan surveys about other top sports sites, if you look at the surveys that other sports websites do, ESPN is clearly number one. And one of the reasons I believe is that all the different media that ESPN brings including TV, radio, print, the quality of that brand, and sports is just one thing that Yahoo focuses on.

I'm actually more concerned with the guy and the gal in the garage and what startups can bring out than some of the traditional competition, which while formidable, is almost more predictable.

Now, I'm no ESPN hater. I use their fantasy systems for a couple leagues, I watch their content on TV (hello, SEC), and I pay attention to everything they do from a tech and business perspective. I'm not down on the other big guys like Yahoo! or CBS, for that matter (although I can't figure out what the hell Fox Sports is ever doing).

But, as I've alluded to before: Every industry consolidates and, ultimately, stagnates. And Kosner knows that the fight between the big boys is not what really threatens the King, its the smaller, stealth guys whom innovate at a rapid pace and compete on creativity, not price or capital, that starts to take away market share.

So, if you're a mid-sized firm, a startup, or just a guy (or gal) with a fantasy sports idea, Kosner affirmed two things for you: Now's your chance . . . but ESPN's watching.