EliteXC announces deal with CBS - Fight Forum - MMA - UFC - Boxing - K1

Gygax · 02-27-2008, 01:37 PM

This could be HUGE for EliteXC.

EliteXC Expected to Announce Deal with CBS — MMAjunkie.com Exclusive

Quote:

ProElite Inc., the parent company of Elite Xtreme Combat, is expected to announce a deal with CBS that will put MMA on major network television for the first time.

Sources close to the deal tell MMAjunkie.com (UFC News & Rumors - MMA News - UFC Fighters - UFC Event Recaps and Previews - MMAjunkie.com) that an agreement has been reached between CBS and the Los Angeles-based ProElite. However, officials could not publicly comment on the matter.

EliteXC was founded as a partnership with Showtime Networks Inc. in 2006. The organization’s events, which are held under the EliteXC and ShowXC banners, currently air on Showtime.

Showtime is owned by CBS.

A source who spoke exclusively to MMAjunkie.com said that CBS will broadcast live EliteXC events in prime-time slots. The events will likely take place every other month.

An official announcement with additional details of the deal is expected to be announced in the next few days. A broadcast schedule and debut date could be included.

The announcement will come just weeks after EliteXC’s successful “Street Certified” event in Miami, Fla. In addition to drawing a sold-out crowd and setting a live gate record at the BankUnited Center, the event reportedly drew more than half a million Showtime viewers.

The fact that EliteXC — and not the UFC, the worldwide MMA leader — landed the first network-television deal is a bit of a surprise.

Beginning in October, UFC president Dana White stated that he was confident the organization would reach a deal with a major TV network, most notably CBS or NBC. In November MediaPost Publications reported that the UFC and CBS were in “advanced negotiations” and that the announcement of an official partnership was expected to happen at any time. UFC 81, which took place earlier this month, was expected to be the first UFC event to air on CBS.

However, the deal eventually fell apart — reportedly over issues with the creative control of the events. Those same issues kept a deal between the UFC and HBO from coming together last year, as well.

ProElite has been on a shopping spree during the past year, purchasing organizations such as ICON Sport, Cage Rage, King of the Cage, and Spirit MC. Additionally, the organization has recently signed long-term deals with notables such as Nick Diaz, Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson, Robbie Lawler, Jake Shields, Murilo “Ninja” Rua and Gina Carano.

Crashsti · 02-27-2008, 01:40 PM

It is a bit surprising that EliteXC may beat the UFC to being the first MMA promotion with a major network deal. I wonder what EliteXC is willing to settle for that the UFC would'nt?

T-Bone · 02-27-2008, 01:40 PM

Yeah, this is good news. Thanks Gygax.

Television industry trade publication Variety.com is reporting that SHOWTIME’s subscription base rose by 11% during the fourth quarter of 2007.

Guess who will be saying this soon:
"Network deals are a fu**in' farce."

Gygax · 02-27-2008, 02:29 PM

This actually could end up helping Zuffa a bit. They broke off negotiations with CBS a while ago and have recently been negotiating with NBC. If NBC is serious about broadcasting MMA, they may make a deal with the UFC quicker. And the UFC is much more capable of putting any number of shows on the network in a very short period of time. It may not be until June that CBS/EliteXC make their first broadcast.

Hopefully, this deal will spur EliteXC to stop promoting the fringe elements (aka Street Certified) of MMA and concentrate on the real talent that they have.

T-Bone · 02-27-2008, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gygax

This actually could end up helping Zuffa a bit. They broke off negotiations with CBS a while ago and have recently been negotiating with NBC. If NBC is serious about broadcasting MMA, they may make a deal with the UFC quicker. And the UFC is much more capable of putting any number of shows on the network in a very short period of time. It may not be until June that CBS/EliteXC make their first broadcast.

Hopefully, this deal will spur EliteXC to stop promoting the fringe elements (aka Street Certified) of MMA and concentrate on the real talent that they have.

The creative control part is important but you're right, now maybe the other network(s) will have to give a little from their end. Or they just might wait it out and see what happens.

Fringe or no fringe, EliteXC will promote what ever makes them $. Kimbo is a goldmine so far. They do have some talent to work with.

Gygax · 02-27-2008, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by T-Bone

The creative control part is important but you're right, now maybe the other network(s) will have to give a little from their end. Or they just might wait it out and see what happens.

Fringe or no fringe, EliteXC will promote what ever makes them $. Kimbo is a goldmine so far. They do have some talent to work with.

For the long term health of the organization, they have to get quality rather than fringe stars. Over-promoting guys like Kimbo and Krazy Horse Bennett will not lead to long term health. Continuing to promote guys like Antonio Silva, KJ Noons, Robbie Lawler, Nick Diaz, and especially Jake Shields is the way to go. Otherwise, you will have people tuning in on a less consistent basis, similar to the viewership of the Toughman competitions.

I like Kimbo a lot and thinks he has a good albeit short future in the sport. But you cannot rely completely on him for viewership, especially on a channel as traditional shall we say as CBS.

BTW, at this point, EXC is still bleeding red out their ass financially. Even the Kimbo-Tank fight was held in a tiny arena, especially as compared to the crowds that Strikeforce events get. And the Showtime deal likely pays them little as they were willing to sign anything to get on the premium network. Yet they paid top dollar to a few of their particpants and pennies to a few others.

T-Bone · 02-27-2008, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gygax

For the long term health of the organization, they have to get quality rather than fringe stars. Over-promoting guys like Kimbo and Krazy Horse Bennett will not lead to long term health. Continuing to promote guys like Antonio Silva, KJ Noons, Robbie Lawler, Nick Diaz, and especially Jake Shields is the way to go. Otherwise, you will have people tuning in on a less consistent basis, similar to the viewership of the Toughman competitions.

I like Kimbo a lot and thinks he has a good albeit short future in the sport. But you cannot rely completely on him for viewership, especially on a channel as traditional shall we say as CBS.

BTW, at this point, EXC is still bleeding red out their ass financially. Even the Kimbo-Tank fight was held in a tiny arena, especially as compared to the crowds that Strikeforce events get. And the Showtime deal likely pays them little as they were willing to sign anything to get on the premium network. Yet they paid top dollar to a few of their particpants and pennies to a few others.

Long term health...spoken like an athletic trainer.

I happen to agree with you about promoting the stars...particularly if MMA is going to be subject to more exposure by being shown on a major network. Kimbo is getting up there in age and he's still a work in progress but I don't think they should stop promoting him regardless of the network deal.

Rumbin · 02-27-2008, 02:54 PM

I personally like what the UFC is doing. Why cater to a network when you are making a TON of money by yourself and not sharing it with anyone else?

Rush · 02-27-2008, 03:31 PM

I think this is great. EliteXC is just making MMA more accessible. I personally think Zuffa could learn from it.

jyd94 · 02-27-2008, 03:44 PM

This might be the first but lets see how it goes. They might turn it into contenter where they show highlights of the fights and slowmo clips of the guy who's fighting kids in the crowd crying cause daddy is getting destroyed. Dana has issues with Spike and what they choose to show on TUF already, I sure as hell wouldn't hand over the reins of the image of my company to someone else. Sometimes those networks can ruin just about anything, you guys comment on how you hate UFC pushing 'stars' on us sometimes. Just imagine what CBS is gonna do with guys who are not the best fighters but have 'star' power. I am looking at this a bit negativly but there is the positive of more eyes on and money spent on the sport we love so much.

dsver1 · 02-27-2008, 04:19 PM

I cringe when I say this, but I'm surprised that Fox hasn't gotten into the MMA scene. FX would have done it well and been a good competitor for a smaller org vs. Spike's showings. I cringe at Fox because they have a habit of killing good things and spawning evil things.

Right now though, Viacom seems to have the MMA scene locked up on three fronts: Showtime & EliteXC, CBS & EliteXC, Spike & UFC.

T-Bone · 02-28-2008, 09:08 AM

More details...

Quote:

Earlier today MMAjunkie.com (UFC News & Rumors - MMA News - UFC Fighters - UFC Event Recaps and Previews - MMAjunkie.com) broke the news that ProElite, Inc., the parent company of Elite Xtreme Combat, appears to be on the verge of signing a landmark deal with CBS that will put MMA on major network television for the first time.

Thanks to Kevin Iole of MMAjunkie.com’s partner site Yahoo! Sports, we now have a few additional details.

According to his report, the official announcement of the deal will come tomorrow. In it, EliteXC and CBS will confirm a four-fight deal that begins with an event in April.

Additionally, Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson, the YouTube brawler who earned a lucrative long-term deal with EliteXC in late 2007, will likely headline the first CBS event — either in Atlantic City, N.J. or at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., Iole reports.

Ferguson, a former bodyguard in the pornography business who now trains with MMA legend Bas Rutten, most recently defeated veteran slugger David “Tank” Abbott in the main event of the organization’s Feb. 16 “Street Certified” show. The event, which drew a sold-out crowd of 6,187, set a record live gate for the University of Miami’s BankUnited Center.

Ferguson, who hails from Miami, was the primary draw for the event. As MMAjunkie.com previously reported, he earned an event-best base salary of $175,000, according to the Florida State Boxing Commission. Additionally, since our initial report, MMAjunkie.com has been informed that EliteXC officials, including EliteXC live events president Gary Shaw, and Ferguson have met and discussed a possible contract extension.

According to Iole, CBS is expected to air the EliteXC events on Saturdays as live two-hour broadcasts, most likely from 9 to 11 p.m. ET.

EliteXC, which was formed as a partnership with Showtime Networks Inc. in 2006, had previously aired almost all of its events on the subscription-cable channel. Earlier today Sam Caplan of fiveouncesofpain.com passed along a report that stated Showtime subscription totals rose 11 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007. A highly publicized October “ShoXC” event and a major November EliteXC show likely played a role in the increase.

Showtime is owned by CBS, which is an investor in ProElite. As Caplan reported on fiveouncesofpain.com, CBS recently increased its ownership stake in the company, possibly injecting the fight promotion with some much-needed funds.

More Details on Landmark EliteXC-CBS Deal; Kimbo Slice Possible Headliner -- MMAjunkie.com

Gygax · 02-28-2008, 09:27 AM

Official Press Release from EliteXC regarding the deal.

BTW, just a few days ago, CBS invested another $4 million in EliteXC, having already financed them in the past.

bayouboy · 02-28-2008, 02:22 PM

I'm wondering how MMA will be received on any of the major networks. If you think there were opponents before just wait. No matter how you sugar coat it MMA can be a brutal sport. I'm just saying I don't know how it will be received.

giguer · 02-28-2008, 02:42 PM

So maybe no more ppv lol

Gygax · 02-28-2008, 02:53 PM

Interesting possibility that was just floated on Hardcore Radio. This may be a deal like most television shows, or it may end up being a time purchase. By that, sometimes production companies buy television time to get their product out there. They therefore control all production, as approved by the television channel, and garner all advertising revenue. But usually, this "time buy" is a loss of revenue in the beginning until you can show prove the show you are putting on is worthwhile and then the network will buy the show for the following season. This is what the UFC did for the first season of TUF on Spike. When it became successful, Spike renewed the show, buying the rights to broadcast it. Its part of the reason the first couple of seasons had so much blatant product placement, to regain some of the cost of paying Spike to broadcast it. There are countless other shows that have done this, especially in the era of reality TV.

In the past, big television networks have been willing to sell Saturday night broadcast time because generally, its a ratings deadzone. But if you put on the right kind of specifically targeted programming, it can be a windfall.

Basically, theres a chance that EliteXC is using some of the $4 million of CBS funding from last week to purchase the time on CBS at very favorable terms. While this would mean the agreement will be much less lucrative for EliteXC, it would still be a great move by them.

This is all speculation. It could very well be that CBS needs EliteXC to succeed to help its substantial investment, thus making it a no-brainer that they should start broadcasting the product in the ratings deadzone. The ProElite/EliteXC stock was as high as $15 in October of last year, but is now at an all time low of $2.95 set today as of a few minutes ago, even with news of the agreement.

Congrats to EliteXC and more importantly Doug DeLuca of ProElite, who was responsible for this arrangement. We should know more in a few hours after an expected interview with DeLuca.

ChipShank · 02-28-2008, 04:25 PM

This is a hair off topic...
But I admit to being pretty geeked when the UFC bought out Pride...thinking that it would actually be a good thing. In retrospect...that whole deal was about 30% cool...60% suckage...10% undecided at this point. Dana & Co. have been getting a little too cocky, thinking that THEY ARE MMA and on the whole, I think that the sport has suffered a bit as of late because of them.

I honestly think that the emergence of some of these new organizations is great. It keeps everyone on their toes and at some point, should help keep the UFC a bit more honest. I very excited to see more on the MMA horizon, than just a barrage of UFC productions. Nothing against them per say...I just don't want to have to be force fed Dana-hype forever. Not to say that Kimbo, Tank or the impending Shamrock vs Shamrock are the equivalent of an MMA Messiah or anything like that....but anything that forces the UFC out of autopilot mode and keeps them working at putting together the best shows that they can...is a good thing, IMO.

My greatest hope though, is that these organizations that go on and on about not being afraid to let their biggest stars cross over and compete against the biggest stars from other organizations continue to do so, once they're more established and have a lot more to lose in those match ups.
It's easy to talk smack and challenge the entire world, when that scenario is all upside for you...no matter the outcome of any given match. We'll see how long that sort of attitude carries on, once their "star" fighters become more well know and less of a long shot in the eyes of the general viewers out there in TV land.

MTKrav911 · 02-28-2008, 04:39 PM

This is great news for those of us in MMA who want the sport to expand and become more and more mainstream.

This news sucks for those who for some reason think only The UFC is MMA.

IMO any MMA is good MMA. Production may suck, but if it stands true to the principles of MMA which is REAL fights with REAL professionals?

I'm all for it.

Kudos to EliteXC

Beazt · 02-28-2008, 05:24 PM

I'll raise my glass to this!

I'm totally psyched. UFC has a majority of the top talent in the world right now. In a few years, when more and more people have trained and practiced in mma there will be a larger pool of top talent. When that happens, there will not be a large gap between UFC and other promotions.

UFC may be top dog for now but if they don't sign a major network deal then they won't be. Don't any of you dare tell me that you aren't going to watch these free EliteXC events. It's going to do well on Saturday night......very well.

That being said, having EliteXC on CBS guarantees one thing. The UFC won't be far behind. Don't be surprised to hear UFC sign a major network deal with NBC within the next month. NBC will pony up more cash and UFC will be less demanding.

Crashsti · 02-29-2008, 12:40 PM

i'm taking a wait and see approach to this. MMA can really turn to crap when people who don't anything about the sport start making the calls. I'm not saying i want to see this fail. I just have to wonder if EliteXC is ready for this. So far they've put on only a handful of events and now they're going to be on regular TV. Thats a big step.