Boxing fans will finally get a showdown between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao. The two men have
signed on for a May 2 fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas after years of failed negotiations. Almost just as interesting,
the event marks a rare revenue share for HBO and Showtime. The two pay cable networks are collaborating on the
event, a rare pay-per-view split last seen in the 2002 match between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson. (Pacquiao and
promoter Bob Arum have a PPV deal with HBO, while Mayweather is a top attraction at Showtime.)
The fee is going to be higher than the average pay-per-view fight, likely $89.95 higher for high-def.
Speaking to the long road to securing the fight, Showtime Sports EVP and GM Stephen Espinoza did not mince
words about the difficulty: "Every side of this negotiation bore some of the pain, and that's how it got done."
The rewards will likely be incredible. The highest-grossing pay-per-view boxing match to date is Showtime's 2013
showdown between Mayweather and Saul Alvarez. That took in $150 million viewers with total fight revenues closer
to $200 million including sponsorships, international TV rights and a blockbuster $20 million gate. It's for all of these
reasons that a Mayweather-Pacquiao matchup has been a top priority for CBS-owned Showtime and CBS Corp.
president and CEO Leslie Moonves, who was intimately involved in the negotiations.
Despite the relatively short time table to promote Mayweather and Pacquiao, it seems a given that this one will
set a new high.
Source: THR
signed on for a May 2 fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas after years of failed negotiations. Almost just as interesting,
the event marks a rare revenue share for HBO and Showtime. The two pay cable networks are collaborating on the
event, a rare pay-per-view split last seen in the 2002 match between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson. (Pacquiao and
promoter Bob Arum have a PPV deal with HBO, while Mayweather is a top attraction at Showtime.)
The fee is going to be higher than the average pay-per-view fight, likely $89.95 higher for high-def.
Speaking to the long road to securing the fight, Showtime Sports EVP and GM Stephen Espinoza did not mince
words about the difficulty: "Every side of this negotiation bore some of the pain, and that's how it got done."
The rewards will likely be incredible. The highest-grossing pay-per-view boxing match to date is Showtime's 2013
showdown between Mayweather and Saul Alvarez. That took in $150 million viewers with total fight revenues closer
to $200 million including sponsorships, international TV rights and a blockbuster $20 million gate. It's for all of these
reasons that a Mayweather-Pacquiao matchup has been a top priority for CBS-owned Showtime and CBS Corp.
president and CEO Leslie Moonves, who was intimately involved in the negotiations.
Despite the relatively short time table to promote Mayweather and Pacquiao, it seems a given that this one will
set a new high.
Source: THR