MMA Weekly reports that the prelims for UFC 131 will not only be streamed via the UFC’s Facebook page as is the norm now, but it will also be streamed via YouTube. The channel run by the UFC will not go live until Saturday.
MMA Weekly states that YouTube has increased its coverage of live events including the Coachella music concert last month.
Payout Perspective:
With the UFC already streaming on Facebook, the decision to stream on YouTube seems duplicative and almost cannibalizing its own streaming product. Then again, maybe its a way to get the anti-Facebookers to check out the fights online. More likely, its an expansion of its online presence and a way of determining the best strategy to proceed with its online streaming. The UFC has always been ahead of the game when it comes to new media and this is another example. It will be interesting to see how it does with a less than stellar card this weekend.
“With the UFC already streaming on Facebook, the decision to stream on YouTube seems duplicative and almost cannibalizing its own streaming product.”
But isn’t it all internal with no ad revenue? So why would it matter?
PS: I see no one has responded to my comments on the Kevin James article…
I’m pretty sure the YouTube presence allows for viewing on mobile devices, so there is a potential expanded market there…
Youtube or Facebook… the UFC’s goal is that you buy the PPV as a result of watching the free fights.
El chango you hit it “right on the button.” I would say another goal is to expose fighters that might be on PPV in the future to more viewers, which leads back to the first goal: to sell more PPVs. Zuffa will use all the means at their disposal to expose people to their product. They have lots of international web and TV deals that I doubt garner many viewers, but provide people with access to UFC content nonetheless. It’s all an effort to prime new markets, or untapped segments of markets the UFC has already broken into. A lot of people are put off by Facebook (including me, I have a fake one under James Smith just for watching UFC prelims), so expanding their streaming programming onto the YouTube platform is just another attempt to reach as many potential viewers as possible. It is great that Zuffa does this, but in the end their primary goal is to increase PPV buys and expose future PPV fighters.
To quote The Office season 2, “it’s win, win, win.” The fans win by being able to watch more free MMA fights, the fighters win by getting more exposure and more sponsorship money, and the UFC wins by enticing more people to buy their PPVs. Win, win, win (no, not “winning,” Charlie, this dynamic is full of ACTUAL win).