Spike TV and the UFC have announced they’ve partnered to establish an ad-supported website called UltimateFighter.com that will feature every episode and fight in the history of the series.
Ultimatefighter.com unlocks a video-rich experience that UFC fans have been waiting for, with over 1000 clips, full episodes and other video assets from all 10 seasons of “The Ultimate Fighter.” Every knockout, submission and fight finish from the series can be viewed through the site’s annotated video player, which houses all 231 complete fights that aired on TUF. That number includes the full fight cards of all ten season finales.
More:
For the new season, the site will offer an unprecedented amount of original programming from “The Ultimate Fighter 11: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz,” with in-depth editorial coverage, video exclusives, even fights that didn’t make it to air in their entirety. The site is also the new home of “The Aftermath,” the web-only show that breaks down and discusses every episode of the series with the fighters themselves. “The Aftermath” is hosted by “Ultimate Fighter” season 1 finalist Stephan Bonnar, and Dana White will again be the first guest on the premiere episode which is sponsored by The Marines.
Payout Perspective:
MMAPayout.com has been talking about the benefits of branded content (ad-supported) website ventures for the better part of the last six months, and UltimateFighter.com is the newest example of how this distribution model can be put into place to expand the reach of the UFC content.
The site will function much in the way that Hulu.com does: users are able to watch the content for free, but subjected to watching, or participating in, sponsored content. The model allows for greater flexibility and interaction between sponsor companies and the target consumer, while also giving the consumer free access to content. In the process, the UFC is no longer bound by the 98 million or 75 million homes on Spike and Versus (and the high channel placements, constrained air times, etc.); these shows are available on demand to whomever wants to watch them.
Perhaps the smartest thing Spike and the UFC have done is to integrate the website with social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter. Not only is web 2.0 out-pacing regular websites in terms of traffic, but these networks allow for even greater interaction between the UFC, sponsors, and the fans.
Why is interaction so important? Ask yourself what types of things are going to strengthen your tie and association with a sport: comments sections, polls, contests, the ability to ask questions – even chat – with personalities. Interaction is one of the quickest ways to building infallible brand loyalty.
Speaking of UFC and social media, who ever handles the UFC twitter account does a nice job of keeping it funny while interacting with fans and promoting the product. One of the few official feeds that is fun to follow.
Isn’t it Amy Martin?