Al Parinello, who was hired by RCA to promote the new technology, received a phone call from Rasmussen and wanted to meet with him in person.
They were then directed to RCA, which had experience in satellite communication, having launched Satcom into orbit and frequently using the technology in Europe the concept was still new in the United States (satellite delivery was first used for full-time television broadcasts by HBO in September 1975), and was not immediately embraced. The trio still had to find a way to broadcast their new sports channel and began their research at United Cable, where they were told about a new means of television distribution, satellite communication. In spite of these initial difficulties, ESP was incorporated on July 13, 1978, for a fee of $91. Beyus felt the future of ESP was in doubt and departed following the conference. 35 reporters were invited, however only four appeared and were less than enthusiastic about the prospects of the company. Despite the setback, the team held a press conference to help spread the word. The representatives that were present were skeptical of the concept and stated that it would be impractical and too costly to take a risk on something that would seemingly falter. They began to pitch their idea on June 26 of that year, inviting twelve representatives from local cable operators – only five of whom had accepted the offer. In the summer of 1978, the Rasmussens, with Eagan and his associate Bob Beuys – who owned a video production company – began to seek out support from cable operators and potential investors for the sports channel which they had come to name the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network ( ESP). Rasmussen knew little about cable television at the time and with under 20% of homes receiving cable, the task to create such a network was tedious. Though discouraged by his firing, Rasmussen and Eagan began to discuss a new course Bill Rasmussen's original idea was to create a cable television network that focused on covering all sporting events in the state of Connecticut (for example, the Whalers, the Bristol Red Sox and the Connecticut Huskies), rather than just focusing on one team as Eagan had proposed. Eagan approached Bill with the idea of creating a monthly cable television program covering Connecticut sports and was curious to see if the Whalers would be interested in being the main feature on the show. During his tenure with the hockey team, Rasmussen had met Eagan, who displayed an interest in building a career in television. Bill, who had an affinity with sports for much of his life, was fired from his position as the communications manager for the New England Whalers in 1978.
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