Amazon has officially inked a deal with the UFC to begin streaming PPV fights starting with UFC 222 which will take place this Saturday, March 3rd at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada. This Saturday's event will mark the first time that live PPV material is being made available on Amazon Prime Video.
UFC fans will be able to buy the PPV ($64.99) directly through Amazon and you won’t need an Amazon Prime account. You’ll be able to watch it on all the same devices where you can watch Amazon Prime videos. You can also order through Amazon even if you don't have an existing relationship with cable or satellite providers, such as Comcast or Dish Network, according to Recode.
Recode outlined several reasons why Amazon's UFC deal is important.
"It’s the first time Amazon has sold a pay-per-view package for live sports, and it’s a reminder that Amazon sees live sports as an important video opportunity moving forward. Remember, the company paid $50 million last year to stream “Thursday Night Football” games and is in the bidding to get a multi-year contract with the NFL to stream “Thursday Night Football” again. Live sports matter to Amazon."
"Amazon’s move to PPV should be another warning to cable companies that Amazon is becoming its own kind of cable company. It already does a lot of what cable companies do, like provide a slate of movies and TV shows, some of them original, for a monthly fee. In that vein, PPV is a natural progression for where Amazon seems to be headed."
UFC 222 will feature featherweight champion Cris "Cyborg" Santos (19-1, 1 NC) defending her title for the second time in 63 days when she takes on Yana Kunitskaya (10-3, 1 NC). Additionally, the main card includes Frankie Edgar vs Brian Ortega, Sean O’Malley vs. Andre Soukhamthath, Stefan Struve vs. Andrei Arlovski, and Cat Zingano vs. Ketlen Vieira.
