President and CEO of TKO Group Holdings Mark Shapiro During Wednesday’s third-quarter financial call, it was revealed that discussions are already underway to expand the UFC’s reach into Skydance’s growing media empire.
“We’re going to maximize HBO, TNT, Paramount+ and CBS,” Shapiro said, explaining that the ultimate goal is to increase viewership, viewership and overall engagement for the UFC.
New opportunities arise from this Paramount’s recently completed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. The massive deal brought CBS, Paramount+, HBO, HBO Max, CNN, TNT Sports and several other major platforms under the same Skydance corporate roof. The company also plans to merge its two streaming services over time.
This gives the UFC considerably more places to showcase its product, although no specific events, distribution plans or launch dates have been announced.
The UFC’s seven-year, $7.7 billion deal will still make Paramount+ the primary home for all numbered events and Fight Night cards available on the streaming service. Select marquee events can also be simulcast on CBS.
The addition of HBO and TNT could create new opportunities for live cards, simulcasting major events, documentaries and other additional programming. It’s only a potential outcome at this stage, but Shapiro made it clear that TKO and Skydance are actively considering how to use all the platforms available to them.
A UFC card on HBO would have historic significance.
HBO was once synonymous with top combat sports, broadcasting some of boxing’s biggest fights 45 years ago. Abandoning live boxing at the end of 2018. Its last boxing show took place on December 8 of the same year.
Now, nearly a decade later, the UFC may return to the iconic premium network of combat sports.
The biggest unanswered question for fans is whether the additional distribution would make UFC events easier to find or spread them across multiple different platforms. Paramount+ remains the central home of the promotion for now, but the days of the UFC existing almost exclusively on one streaming service may be numbered.