Sports fans who are customers of EPB Fiber Optics can now get their sports fix on the go, after the Chattanooga-based television and broadband internet provider allowed customers access to the WatchESPN service this week.
Customers who subscribe to EPB's FiTV cable service can watch all of the ESPN networks -- including the recently launched SEC Network -- by using the WatchESPN app on their smartphone or tablet or on desktop and laptop computers by logging in at WatchESPN.com.
The WatchESPN service launched Tuesday, and allows mobile access to all programing on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU, ESPN News, the Longhorn network and the SEC Network. On Saturday at 4 p.m., the SEC Network will carry the Knoxville contest between Tennessee and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
"Basically this just enhances the FiTV experience," EPB spokesman John Pless said Wednesday. "We have been carrying the ESPN networks on our FiTV services and offering this service for mobile devices is just another way to enhance customer experience, especially if they're mobile and on the go.
"If they have to run out of the house and run errands or are sitting in an airport, they can keep up with whatever game they're interested in."
The WatchESPN service had previously been made available by other local cable providers, including Comcast and Charter, as well as through some satalite providers. Several EPB customers had been asking for the service to be added via the company's social media sites on Facebook and Twitter.
Pless said that gaining access to the WatchESPN service was a lengthy process and had been in the works for some time, while ESPN and EPB worked to ensure the service would work properly for EPB customers.
"We have been waiting on ESPN to complete their testing and make sure everything was to their satisfaction as well as ours," Pless said. "This now gives out customers the oppotunity to keep up with their team or conferences while they're on the go."
Contact Jim Tanner at jtanner@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6478. Follow him at twitter.com/JFTanner.