Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to phish however, and he runs the risk of imprisonment, which is exactly what would happen under SOPA if you were found guilty of unauthorized streaming of copyrighted materials. At the same time as websites are being taken down due to copyright infringement, a number of MMA promotions are increasing the amount of free streaming they offer. While UFC put prelim fights up for free and Cage Warriors streamed their entire Fight Night 3 event on Facebook, India’s Super Fight League are pushing things a step further with the announcement that they have signed a three year deal with YouTube. Considering the number of people in India interesting in seeing Bollywood star of over 100 movies, Sanjay Dutt and his friend’s new venture compared to the capacity of the Andheri Sports Complex in Mumbai, this is a very interesting move indeed. Add to that the potential international attention India will gain from a proposed season of The Ultimate Fighter and it starts to look like a very attractive proposition for MMA fans. Below are the key details of the deal as per the press release.
- All fights will be streamed live via the Super Fight League channel, www.youtube.com/SFL
- Additional content will be uploaded including interviews, highlights of each show including knockout and submission of the night as well as the Bollywood and musical performances which will make up part of the show. Think Super Bowl half time show.
- Google will have exclusive online and mobile rights to SFL content for three years.
- Google and SFL will jointly share revenue from sponsorship and advertising from the YouTube channel.
That final point is possibly the most interesting aspect of this deal as this marks the first time I’m aware of that Google have entered the world of MMA in this manner. So to recap, live MMA on YouTube for three years, Google and SFL share revenue and MMA fans get to witness the growth of our glorious sport in an as-yet unexplored landscape. I’d say that’s much cooler than being taught how to fish, or even phish.
