Dana White addresses issues over ESPN+ pay-per-view
UFC 236 was the first ever UFC pay-per-view bought exclusively through ESPN+ for American customers. Although there is no question streaming is the future, many fans and fighters alike had problems with the stream.
First off, you could not buy the pay-per-view on the app, and many had lagging and glitching issues, which UFC President Dana White said would not happen. Although this was the first time, White is more than confident it will only get better and easier for fans to watch pay-per-views.
“Not too long ago, we were in pay-per-view negotiations and we didn’t like the way they were going, so what you don’t ever want to do is to give us a little time to think outside the box,” White said. “So we started talking to ESPN, the talks moved really fast and we struck a deal with ESPN. And we knew we had to pull this fight off very soon, on both sides. And we knew that there were gonna be some hiccups. Hopefully, there aren’t. Hopefully, you can get everything dialed in.
“The next one will be much better. The next one, you’ll be able to purchase right through the app. It’s gonna get easier, it’s gonna get better.”
In the end, this is the way PPV’s will be sold for the next seven years. ESPN and the UFC are in a long-term agreement and White promises it will only get better.
“I’m not just saying this because I’m in business with these guys,” White said. “You know, you’ve seen me in business with guys that I don’t exactly love being in business with. It happens sometimes. These guys are so good at what they do. They’re so good, they’re so on top of everything. We’ll get the problems that people had tonight fixed. And it’ll only get better.”
