UFC owners disclose details of groundbreaking agreement with Paramount for broadcasting rights
The merger of Skydance and Paramount has significantly altered the distribution model of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) by ending the traditional pay-per-view (PPV) approach in the U.S. and shifting all UFC live events exclusively to the streaming platform Paramount+.
Starting in 2026, all 43 annual UFC events will be available on Paramount+ at no additional cost, replacing ESPN+’s previous PPV model. This strategic shift aims to increase accessibility and attract new casual fans who were previously priced out by PPV fees, potentially boosting Paramount+ subscriptions by over one million and enhancing subscriber retention.
The new deal, valued at $7.7 billion over seven years, is a major investment by Paramount+, reflecting high stakes: Paramount is betting on growing UFC viewership via streaming rather than relying on the traditional PPV revenue. The move represents a broader industry trend away from PPV, a model vulnerable to piracy. By placing UFC’s premium events behind a single subscription service, Paramount aims to reduce piracy and fragmentation of sports content.
The merger of Skydance and Paramount played a crucial role in enabling this pivot, leveraging Skydance’s production expertise and technological capabilities alongside Paramount’s distribution network. The merger likely provided the scale and innovation capacity to handle live sports streaming on such a large scale.
In summary, the Skydance-Paramount merger allowed the combined company to aggressively reshape UFC’s U.S. distribution, effectively ending PPV for UFC in favor of streaming subscription. The goal is to scale audience growth and subscriber engagement—a high-risk, potentially high-reward strategy amid changing viewer habits and cord-cutting trends.
| Aspect | Pre-Acquisition (ESPN+/PPV) | Post-Acquisition (Paramount+/Skydance) | |-----------------------------|--------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------| | Distribution | Pay-per-view on ESPN+ | All live UFC events included with Paramount+ subscription (no extra PPV fee) | | Revenue Model | PPV fees + subscription | Subscription-only | | Accessibility | Cost barrier from PPV fees | Lower barrier; potential for broader audience reach| | Impact on Piracy | Vulnerable due to PPV model | Reduced by centralized streaming on a major platform| | Strategic Importance | ESPN held rights until 2026 | Paramount+ acquired rights in a merger-enabled deal involving Skydance | | Financial Commitment | Lower rights fees from ESPN | $7.7 billion over seven years (~$1.1 billion/year) |
The agreement does not include traditional PPV broadcasts for UFC events. Mark Shapiro and the team of Skydance quickly figured out the economics of the deal, and the agreement was finalized shortly after the purchase of Paramount. The first move made after the purchase was a $1.5 billion agreement with the creators of South Park to keep the show on the platform.
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