Part of ESPN/Disney's problem is they hugely overpaid for the broadcast rights to the NBA a year or so ago.  Also, if the streaming ESPN doesn't have some of their major products (most importantly college football), then it's practically pointless.  If Iger wants to keep the major products (like college football) on cable (for the time being), which I can understand (for true sports fans who still want their sports on cable/more stable environment than streaming), why not also put it on the streaming version as well.  Some may opt for the streaming only option (b/c cheaper), but for true sports fans, I'd imagine they'd still want ESPN on cable.  When you're ready to watch a big college football clash, is a serious fan really going to leave it to streaming the game online?  No way, at least not until online streaming becomes as stable and dependable as cable.