Ever since the UFC became available on pay-per-view, people flocked to various websites to find hacked UFC live streaming sites. With each event costing $44.95 and $55.95 for HD, it’s getting harder to buy UFC events. More and more UFC fans are turning to these alternative sites to watch their favorite UFC fighters. Is Zuffa just wasting their time and money?
Zuffa LLC., owner of the UFC, has been very active in its battle against piracy. Zuffa has gone so far as to submit citations for Justin.TV and Ustream.tv, popular sites where users can stream their own content; Zuffa also sued a man who sold UFC broadcasts for $6.99 a piece for $6,000,000. The latest in this swarm of lawsuits from the UFC is one against Bellator for alleged theft of “trade secrets.”
Zuffa is wasting their time and money trying to stop all these pirated streams. Instead of trying to destroy these illegal streams, why not try to make the service more affordable and thus increase the number of sales? The UFC currently offers live shopping streaming from its verified vendors here. The problem is that all of these sites are still at least $44.95. Anyone who googles “UFC Streaming” will come across an illegal streaming site before going to the UFC site and then paying the full $44.95 for the fight.
These UFC streaming sites will never stop due to sheer volume, not to mention that several are hosted in countries outside of the US, a money-consuming process that would not yield any positive results.
The NFL, NBA and MLB have viewed illegal broadcasting as a lost cause. This is due in part to the fact that they make money from advertising on big networks like CBS, FOX, TNT, and more. Even if there is an illegal broadcast of one of these sports, the viewer still sees the commercials. So what can the UFC do to take advantage of these broadcasts? The most obvious solution is to make buying UFC streaming events online available at a reduced price from their authorized providers. People, including me, are much more likely to buy an event that costs $14.99 than $44.95. I’m willing to bet they’re three times as likely.
By lowering the price of its flows and increasing the volume of sales, the total income would probably be higher than that of the current pricing system. The second solution would be much more difficult. The UFC would need to join a big network, like CBS or Spike for their big UFC events and go for the ad money generated from the commercials. The problem with this idea is that UFC events are already 2-3 hours long, and with commercial breaks, viewers may no longer want to stick around for the entire show.
In the end, the UFC is waging a war against the UFC live streaming sites that it just can’t win. Zuffa needs to take a new, more practical approach. As society continues to become more tech-savvy, illegal flows will continue to be easier to find and harder to root out.
Additionally, the UFC is streaming the prelims of UFC Fight Night 23: Fight for the Troops 2 for free on Facebook on January 18, 2011.