Werner to Leave ESPN, Join Daniels’ Firm

Roger L. Werner Jr. was named president and chief executive of Prime Ventures Inc., a new company formed to oversee the wide-ranging sports interests of Denver-based cable-television magnate Bill Daniels.

Werner, 40, will resign as president of sports network ESPN, the largest cable network in the country. His departure comes at a difficult time for the Capital Cities/ABC Inc. subsidiary, which faces slower growth just as it has entered several expensive sports deals.

Daniels’ interests include ownership stakes in 15 regional sports networks around the country, such as Prime Ticket in Los Angeles, and minority ownership of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Werner will relocate from New York to Prime Ticket’s offices in Century City.