or


[08/18/11 - 10:00 AM]
FOX Sports Media Group Reaches Multi-Year, Multi-Media Rights Agreement With Ultimate Fighting Championship
Said pact includes Spike TV's "The Ultimate Fighter," which will move to FX in the spring of 2012.

[via press release from UFC]

UFC & FOX PACK PERFECT PUNCH

FOX SPORTS MEDIA GROUP REACHES MULTI-YEAR, MULTI-MEDIA RIGHTS AGREEMENT WITH ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP

FOX to Broadcast Four Fights Annually Beginning November 2011

The Ultimate Fighter, Featuring a New Format, Moves to FX

Today, Ultimate Fighting Championship(R) (UFC), the world's leading mixed martial arts organization and No. 1 Pay-Per-View event provider in the world, finds its perfect media match in FOX, the No. 1 television network in the country. FOX Sports Media Group, the umbrella entity representing FOX Networks Group's wide array of sports platforms, has reached a multi-year, multi-media rights agreement with Zuffa, LLC, owner of the UFC brand.

The landmark agreement, which puts UFC on par with many of the country's professional sports organizations, delivers four live events in prime time or late night each year to the FOX broadcast network, home to the country's biggest sports events, including the Super Bowl, World Series and Daytona 500. The first live event airs Saturday, Nov. 12 at 9:00 PM ET/6:00 PM PT. Additional programming on multiple FOX networks launches January 2012 and includes live fights, pre and post shows, countdown shows, UFC Unleashed, UFC Primetime, the UFC Knockout series, Best of Pride, weigh-in specials, and much more original content from extensive Zuffa archives. The agreement also provides for developing robust mobile and authenticated online offerings to exploit a vast array of digital platform rights.

In spring 2012, THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER, UFC's signature weekly reality show moves to FX, FOX's general entertainment cable network now in more than 99 million homes. With the move to FX, the show will feature a newly-designed format. FX is also set to televise another four-to six-live UFC events annually, with a mixture of additional events and programs heading to FSMG cable networks including FUEL TV.

"We're excited to be part of the FOX family," says Dana White, UFC President. "The UFC is finally where it belongs on the number one network in the country and aligned with the most prestigious sports properties in the world. I've always said that the UFC will be the biggest sport in the world and with this relationship it will become a reality."

"My brother Frank, Dana and I always believed that our passion for the sport of Mixed Martial Arts would help us to build the UFC into a successful global brand and ultimately make it one of the premier sports properties in the world," said Lorenzo Fertitta, Chairman and CEO of the UFC. "The partnership with FOX is a major step in making this a reality and also builds on the great relationship that we already have established with FOX in Latin America, Australia and Europe."

"Mixed martial arts is not only the fastest growing sport in the world, but also the world's most exciting form of man-to-man competition, and the UFC is the world's premier MMA organization," said FSMG President & Co-COO Eric Shanks. "Since FOX Sports is America's No. 1 sports network and FOX is America's No. 1 network for young adults, the UFC on FOX is a perfect match."

"UFC's growth over the past decade is nothing short of phenomenal and it has become one of the marquee sports in this country," said John Landgraf, President and General Manager, FX Networks. "There is a reason for its rising popularity. It features some of the greatest athletes in the world, and we believe it will be a terrific addition to our schedule and look forward to our relationship."

Founded in 1993, UFC has been on a meteoric rise since 2001 when it was acquired by Zuffa, LLC, owned by Lorenzo Fertitta, Frank Fertitta III and Dana White. UFC'S first brush with FOX Sports goes back to June 2002, when Fox Sports Net carried UFC's first non-pay-per-view event on basic cable television, and delivered what was then its largest audience to date. Through cooperation with state athletic commissions, consistent rules were established and refined for competition through officiating, judging, the addition of weight divisions, length of rounds and better equipment. Combined with an unyielding devotion to fighter safety, the UFC has vaulted to mainstream status in the minds of US sports fans attracting major sponsors such as Bud Light, Dodge and Harley Davidson.

UFC has displayed tremendous growth in digital and social media consumption. Unique visitors to UFC.com tripled between 2006 and 2010 (2.1 million to 6.3 million), and UFC established local web sites in 10 countries and Latin America. Using a unique blend of incentives, promotions and original content, including live bouts, UFC has seen its number of Facebook friends increase from 800,000 in 2009 to 6.1 million at present, outpacing the NFL, MLB and the NHL. UFC currently ranks second to the NBA in social media followers among the major sports organizations. Additionally, UFC President Dana White regularly interacts with over 1.5 million fans that follow him on Twitter.

Mixed martial arts skews much younger than more established US sports, which ranged from age 43 for Super Bowl XLIV to 61 for horse racing's Triple Crown in 2010. Thus far, the median age for UFC on Spike in 2011 is 36 and 56% of UFC fans fall into the adult 18-34 demographic. Live UFC programming performs extremely well in the advertiser attractive, hard-to-reach male 18-34 demographic, with live event programing averaging a 1.53 rating, making it a top-20 cable show this year.





  [august 2011]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· ULTIMATE FIGHTER, THE (ESPN)





[03/04/25 - 08:03 AM]
HGTV's "Rock the Block" Pits Veterans Against Rookies in a New Season of the Blockbuster Competition Series
The fresh seven episodes will raise the stakes like never before when two seasoned veteran teams come back to the block to challenge two rookie teams hungry for a win.

[03/04/25 - 08:00 AM]
Acorn TV Shares First-Look at Stephen Moyer in Exhilarating Art World Crime Drama, "Art Detectives"
Set to premiere on Monday, June 9 in the US and Cananda, the six-episode series is centered around the Heritage Crime Unit, a police department consisting of art loving DI Mick Palmer (Moyer) and straight-talking DC Shazia Malik (Nina Singh).

[03/04/25 - 07:30 AM]
Video: Paramount+ Unveils New Trailer for "MobLand"
The series stars Tom Hardy, Helen Mirren and Pierce Brosnan as the head of an organized crime family, fighting for power within a global crime syndicate.

[03/04/25 - 04:43 AM]
Max Launches in Turkey on April 15
Turkey becomes the 77th Max territory and marks a significant moment in the globalization of WBD's streaming service that now has 116.9 million subscribers after adding 6.4 million in Q4 2024.

[03/03/25 - 05:49 PM]
"The Oscars" Tops Last Year in Key Adult Demographic, Ranking as No. 1 Primetime Telecast of the Season
"The Oscars" stands as the No. 1 primetime entertainment telecast in both Total Viewers (18.07 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.92 rating) for the 2024-2025 season.

[03/03/25 - 04:01 PM]
Witness the Unbreakable Cycle of Retribution in Crime Thriller Series "Karma", Premiering April 4
A fateful accident intertwines six lives in a thrilling tale of karma and crime, where each must face their own dark truths and connections.

[03/03/25 - 01:15 PM]
Prime Video Orders Two-Part Documentary Special "Octopus!" Executive Produced and Narrated by Phoebe Waller-Bridge
The documentary transports viewers into the otherworldly depths of one of the most intelligent and mysterious life forms on Earth as it follows the Giant Pacific Octopus from birth to death.

[03/03/25 - 12:00 PM]
Krysten Ritter to Guest Star in Showtime Original Series "Dexter: Resurrection"
Production kicked off in January in New York and the series is set to launch in summer of 2025 on Paramount+ with Showtime.

[03/03/25 - 09:01 AM]
Video: FX's "Alien: Earth," "Dying For Sex," "Adults," "The Bear," & More Coming Soon to Hulu - FX
The award-winning collection awaits.

[03/03/25 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Iliza Shlesinger: A Different Animal" - Official Trailer - Prime Video
Comedian, mother, Millennial ambassador. "Iliza Shlesinger: A Different Animal" premieres March 11.

[03/03/25 - 09:00 AM]
Video: Max Unveils March 6 Premiere Date, Key Art, and Trailer for New Original Preschool Series "Dylan's Playtime Adventures"
Based on the beloved Scholastic book series by bestselling author/illustrator Guy Parker-Rees, the show premieres Thursday, March 6.

[03/03/25 - 08:48 AM]
Video: "Miss Austen" Trailer
Don't miss this fascinating, witty, and heartbreaking story of sisterly love starring Keeley Hawes, premiering on Sunday, May 4.

[03/03/25 - 08:01 AM]
Nickelodeon and Spin Master Entertainment Pick Up "PAW Patrol" and "Rubble & Crew" for New Episode Orders
Both series have been picked up for an additional 26 episodes each, marking seasons 12 and 13 for the award-winning animated series "PAW Patrol," and the third and fourth seasons of "Rubble & Crew."

[03/03/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Asterix & Obelix: The Big Fight" - Official Trailer - Netflix
When the village druid forgets how to prepare their magic potion, Asterix, Obelix and the Gauls must find new ways to keep the Roman conquerors at bay.

[03/03/25 - 07:30 AM]
Paramount+ Announces All New Episodes of MTV's "Family Legacy" to Premiere Tuesday, March 25
10 half-hour episodes will premiere exclusively on the service and feature brand-new interviews with the children of the most influential and iconic musicians and bands.