Professional Fighters League launches OTT streaming service

Mixed martial arts organization Professional Fighters League has launched a new direct-to-consumer streaming service, called the PFL MMA app.

The OTT platform will include PFL’s entire library, from classic matchups to million-dollar championship fights, and never-before-seen World Series of Fighting match-ups.

There will also be original programming from its PFL Studios division, as well as exclusive, never-before-seen interviews and footage.

All content will be free for fans. However, the league will look to monetize the PFL MMA app through sponsorship and advertising opportunities for commercial partners, as well as micro-transaction purchases for fans tied to gaming and exclusive content.

The streaming service, which has been created in partnership with full-service digital content distribution platform ViewLift, will be made available on Apple TV, Roku, Fire, Android, and iOS devices.

PFL chief executive Peter Murray said in a statement: “With the launch of our first OTT platform, we’re excited to fulfill the growing global demand for our product by providing fight fans around the world with free access to premium PFL content wherever, whenever and however they want to consume it.

“Professional Fighters League is a media and content company. As we continue to grow, innovate, and reimagine MMA, we have placed an emphasis on engaging fans all year long through impactful storytelling and unprecedented access to the sport, our fighters, and the action inside the cage. As the app continues to evolve, this will especially be a destination for international fans outside the US,” Murray added.

Russian agency Telesport this week agreed a multi-year deal to broadcast the PFL. The deal is set to begin in 2021, as the 2020 season of the PFL has been postponed in its entirety due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

PFL recently named Loren Mack its new vice-president of corporate communications. In June, Mack left Asian MMA promotion One Championship, where he was a senior director of public relations for five years before becoming vice-president, PR and communications, in 2017.