UFC Partners with Getty Images

The UFC has announced a partnership with the worldwide leader in sports photography, Getty Images, that allows the curator to distribute UFC imagery captured by photographers and become licensor of the entire UFC image archive.

Through this partnership with UFC, Getty Images will manage the distribution and licensing of UFC’s rich archive of pivotal moments in mixed martial arts to service media customers, marketing partners and other third-party outlets.  Additionally, Getty Images will curate one of the most significant collections of UFC imagery as its team of award-winning photographers capture the sport’s defining moments throughout the year.  This collection includes premier events such as the most recent UFC 116 heavyweight title fight between Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin, plus the upcoming Aug. 7th UFC  117 event featuring the return of the world’s greatest pound- for-pound fighter Anderson Silva, UFC middleweight champion vs. Chael Sonnen, number one middleweight contender.

Payout Perspective:

I like this move, because it leaves the UFC free to continue doing what it does best – marketing and hosting fight events – without having to worry about money left on the table. It’s the continuation of a 2+ year effort to start diversifying revenue streams and capitalizing on ancillary opportunities that started with an increased emphasis on DVD sales, improved clothing distribution, and the entire toys/collectibles/video game movement.

Interestingly, I thought we might see that 70-30 ratio of  event to non-event-related revenue start to even out a little more, but the latest update on Zuffa’s credit status indicates that no such movement has occurred. This is not because the UFC has failed to increase non-event-related revenue over the last few years, but because the UFC’s event-related revenues have increased at a pace that matches the increase of non-event-related revenues (e.g., gains from the sale of the video game were matched by new PPV sales records, etc.).