ttt
rnunz - damnI lol'd @ this.
Also, no one cares what i think but Spike is a crap channel anyway. UFC is the only thing I watch on that channel at all. I dont care to watch DEA, Repo Games or whatever other crap show they show. Their movies are always edited. Just another channel I dont have to monitor when I watch tv.
If the UFC is smart, they will negotiate a "transition plan" and slowly move content to the new Channel with plenty of advertising on Spike to announce the new channel.
Sure it will cost the UFC a fuckload of money, but they need to play this correctly.
I'm glad the UFC won't be on Spike anymore. I was missing the 12 hour star trek marathons and episodes of csi: miami, new york, los angeles, hackensack, hoboken, tombstone, etc.
I went to Directv because they had UFC, Directv became the absolute best source for HD programming, now I may lose the free shows?
This shit better get figured out one way or the other.
Pink Bunkadoo -duckhuntgangsta - Huge risk IMO. Spike has a great brand for the UFC. Hope it pays off the the sports sake. Spike will struggle w/o the UFC, that's for sure. <br><br>My guess will be that providers will quickly pick up G4 or whatever they rebrand it as. MMA/UFC is big business and no one is going to want to miss out on that. <img src="/images/phone/post_tag.png" alt="Phone Post" border="0" style="vertical-align:middle;"/>
oh ffs. spike isn't going to struggle one bit without the ufc. The rating for TUF are going in the tank and there are PLENTY of other great shows on that channel. They were around before the ufc and will be around after the ufc leaves them.
MMA isn't as popular as those on the board think. Providers will pick up the channel IF and only IF many many people ask for it-not just because the UFC bought it.
You brainwashed sheep really make me lol sometimes.
Great shows? On Spike? Really?
The UFC helped build that network and they've been trying for years to get the people who tune in ONLY to see UFC events watch that other abominable horse shit they run out. Tell me, why does Spike try to debut every new concept immediately after a live UFC event, or spend large blocks of time promoting new shows during a block of live UFC programming? Spike has all sorts of exclusive rights in the UFC deal that they'll be losing. Then they'll only have the exclusive rights to Bellator, TNA Wrasslin, and that Manswers crap.
And no, the cable and satellite companies aren't run by hillbillies sitting around answering the phone all day to see what channels people want to watch. They follow ADVERTISERS and RATINGS and when they see a megalith of a brand like the UFC change homes then they pick up and go where the money is. Also, prescience is handsomely rewarded, and just because TUF Season X Episode Y drew who-gives-a-fuck for a rating doesn't mean there haven't been some very expensive studies done by NBC/Comcast on the growth potential of the UFC.
This UFC-NBC deal seems like a match made in heaven for all involved. NBC Sports aka Versus needs the UFC's demographic to pull viewers away from ESPN. Zuffa needs a network outlet. G4 apparently needs a make over, and the UFC wants to expand in latin markets. There's no way this shit doesn't happen.
begining of the end. Both parties will loose in this divorce.
mispost..
Just out of curiousity. What happens if Bellator picks up UFC's time slot and starts paying their fighters more money than UFC?
If Bellator make a smooth transition there are going to be a lot of casual fans who barely notice that their ultimate fighting show is under a different brand name. That said, the modern UFC has moved from strength to strength, I doubt they'll confine themselves to one obscure channel.
Ive called this before.... UFC's dominance teeters on a handful of key headliners... You get 2 or 3 high profile defectors and Bellator + Spike would equal a serious problem for UFC...way beyond buying it out for a few million. I hate to say it but a promotion is only good as its last show and with proper production this tide could change alot faster than anyone realizes.
BJJZONE - Ive called this before.... UFC's dominance teeters on a handful of key headliners... You get 2 or 3 high profile defectors and Bellator + Spike would equal a serious problem for UFC...way beyond buying it out for a few million. I hate to say it but a promotion is only good as its last show and with proper production this tide could change alot faster than anyone realizes.
were you bjorn yesterday?
DarkReflection -BJJZONE - Ive called this before.... UFC's dominance teeters on a handful of key headliners... You get 2 or 3 high profile defectors and Bellator + Spike would equal a serious problem for UFC...way beyond buying it out for a few million. I hate to say it but a promotion is only good as its last show and this tide could change faster than you anyone realizes.
That's what contracts are for. Won't happen.
Cheers
-DR
oh yeah...contracts never get broken or expire...seriously dude...how do yhou think America works? Where there a will there is a way my friend.
Herring In A Fur Coat -BJJZONE - Ive called this before.... UFC's dominance teeters on a handful of key headliners...
Not at all. UFC always markets the brand over the individual fighters.<br type="_moz" />
I think the purchase of strikeforce proved that just a couple fighters can undermind an entire division which basically underminds the brand. Any one promotion in general is as good as the perception of the fans. You get one or two badasses in a different promotion and the whole think is botched.
RickMartelsArrogance -KissMisery -
The UFC NEEDS Spike.
No they don't.
If the UFC has something comparable on the table to Spike, or even something with somewhat lower viewership like ESPN 2, then no, they don't need Spike. If their one alternative is G4, then YES, the need Spike as a conduit for new fans. Not only is it in way fewer homes, the majority of people who have the channel don't even know it exists. If they are looking to shoot themselves in the foot, this is a great way to do it. And if they want to spend a few hundred million to buy a channel, then this could be their XFL.
Ghan - It's gonna be hilarious if UFC falls into obscurity and Bellator takes over as the new MMA powerhouse.
Ahahahahahaha God no. The deal on Spike will keep Bellator alive, but the UFC is hundreds of miles ahead of them. They will become minor competition, that's all.
Ghan - UFC on G4 will undoubtedly get lower ratings than UFC on Spike initially. Hopefully they can turn that around though.
You saw how a Spike TV marathon of old Nate Marquardt fights beat a live show on Versus, the fourth one the UFC did? G4 gets less than half the ratings Versus does, and Versus is already a sports channel, and they were doing WEC shows for years before they started doing UFC. They will have to be regularly giving away PPV-caliber cards for free to get the sort of viewership on G4 that they were getting with even their weakest free cards on Spike, and even then I have doubts.
If their disputes with Spike have gotten out of hand, then whatever. If G4 is like part of a multi-network platform they're angling at where they'll The Ultimate Fighter and a couple shows a year on G4, four shows a year on Versus, and six shows a year and some other reality series on some place with much greater viewership like TBS or fX, then I can see it being reasonable.
If they are sticking to G4 and Versus as their only outlets and are legitimately buying a majority stake in G4 for a few hundred million dollars, well, from a business perspective it looks rather insane.
BJJZONE - Just out of curiousity. What happens if Bellator picks up UFC's time slot and starts paying their fighters more money than UFC?
You mean pay their biggest headliners more than what major UFC stars get after their contractual cut of PPV revenue? They'd hemorrhage so much money so fast that Plainfield Asset Management would pull their funding in a few weeks to a couple months time, depending on Bjorn's ability to bullshit (supposedly he is a world class salesman). Then Bellator would immediately file for bankruptcy. Then they'd disappear.
Herring In A Fur Coat - The purchase of Strikeforce only proved that if you get too big for your breeches, Zuffa will swallow you whole. :)
Strikeforce sold out my friend.... What happens when a promotion with a superior division to UFC's decides it aint for sale.... UFC is in the event business. If another promotion comes along and does a better job for just one show its trouble. There is no way to get stable traction in the fight game home slice. It aint the NFL that has thousands of athletes under contract... Its a one man show. One fighter against another...
Is everyone assuming that if Zuffa buys G4 then they will operate it as the "G4" channel? It's a no-brainer (to me at least) that it would become the "UFC" channel, but it seems like a lot of you aren't taking this into consideration. Just sayin
BJJZONE -Herring In A Fur Coat - The purchase of Strikeforce only proved that if you get too big for your breeches, Zuffa will swallow you whole. :)
Strikeforce sold out my friend.... What happens when a promotion with a superior division to UFC's decides it aint for sale.... UFC is in the event business. If another promotion comes along and does a better job for just one show its trouble. There is no way to get stable traction in the fight game home slice. It aint the NFL that has thousands of athletes under contract... Its a one man show. One fighter against another...
not sure if serious