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TBS to air two Yarennoka matches

By Zach Arnold | December 24, 2007

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An official Japanese news release from the network says that Fedor vs. Hong-Man and Akiyama vs. Misaki will air on the K-1 Dynamite time block on NYE for Tokyo Broadcasting System.

It makes sense, given that both Hong-Man and Akiyama are K-1 fighters. The time block for Dynamite on TBS is from 6 PM to 11:34 PM JST.

For K-1, it’s an interesting political move. By airing the top two matches on the DSE event on TBS, it will likely kill sales for DSE’s SkyPerfecTV PPV (given how weak the card is). Also, the move to air these fights on free TV will kill some incentive for fans to show up live in Saitama to watch the show.

Update: The rules for the DSE show have been announced.

Topics: Japan, K-1, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 16 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

16 Responses to “TBS to air two Yarennoka matches”

  1. D. Capitated says:

    The advertising revenue M-1 is likely to gain must just be killing them. What a horrible thing to happen on short notice!

  2. Zach Arnold says:

    The advertising revenue M-1 is likely to gain must just be killing them. What a horrible thing to happen on short notice!

    1) How do you know DSE is getting any ad revenue from TV for the matches?

    2) If they are getting ad revenue, how do you know what kind of $$$ might be transferred?

    It has been known for a few weeks now that DSE was trying to get their show on TBS through K-1, because the financial model of the PPV format was never going to work. So now the top two matches on the Saitama show are going to be shown for free, which kills whatever the buyrate would have been on PPV and also gives an excuse for fans not to show up in Saitama.

    Smarten me up about the Japanese MMA scene.

  3. The Gaijiin says:

    You’ve forgotten you’re dealing with someone that clearly knows EVERYTHING.

  4. D. Capitated says:

    1) How do you know DSE is getting any ad revenue from TV for the matches?

    They just went from “being seen by more people in America” to being seen by probably at least 15% of the population of Japan on the sole NYE MMA show. I would guess that’s gonna make it easier to sell ad space on the canvas/apron/etc. Forgot that existed, right?

  5. Zach Arnold says:

    They just went from “being seen by more people in America” to being seen by probably at least 15% of the population of Japan on the sole NYE MMA show. I would guess that’s gonna make it easier to sell ad space on the canvas/apron/etc. Forgot that existed, right?

    Unless K-1 brings sponsors to the table immediately, who was DSE going to get in the first place to help finance the Saitama show – Don Quijote?

    When you look at the quality of sponsors DSE attracted without Fuji TV’s help, it was not especially strong.

    In order for your argument to work, TBS (through Dentsu or another major ad agency) would have to get sponsors to the table for the DSE show within a week or two’s notice. It’s not impossible, but it would be very tough to pull off logistically.

  6. D. Capitated says:

    Unless K-1 brings sponsors to the table immediately, who was DSE going to get in the first place to help finance the Saitama show – Don Quijote?

    Aren’t we talking about the M-1 Global show? Why are you bringing up DSE and Fuji TV and PRIDE and a bunch of things that have no pertinance?

    Here’s the deal, Zach. We’ll use your rough estimate of 30,000 buys through Skyperfect as the basis here. Instead of that, they’re gonna be seen by, oh, roughly 400X the households in Japan. Plus they now have a network that will have to mention that they’re going to be televising an event that they previously weren’t going to be giving tons of press to.

    Their walkup numbers probably suck and their ad space probably isn’t bought, and both of these things will be helped, not harmed, by having some, hell, any press. Particularly the latter.

    Asking me where someone else got their funding two years ago doesn’t matter. Its about minimizing losses.

  7. Zach Arnold says:

    Aren’t we talking about the M-1 Global show? Why are you bringing up DSE and Fuji TV and PRIDE and a bunch of things that have no pertinance?

    Yarennoka is being produced by a bunch of DSE (or ex-DSE if you are politically correct) staffers and management in conjunction with Hustle (which was created by DSE).

    The M-1 Global tagline (“presented by M-1 global”) is because they were able to book Fedor.

    Usually when it comes to big ad campaigns or ad sales for events like the K-1 Osaka Dome show, Dentsu or other ad agencies that TV networks work closely with spend a few months in advance placing bids and getting orders. The m.o. never has been fast sponsorship turnaround (as in getting sponsors a week or two before a show). Ad time is sold heavily in advance.

    Now, in the case of the DSE show on 12/31, there are two questions to ask: a) Will sponsors be interested in spending money at all and b) is it even logistically possible to get a heavy hitter sponsor to the table within a week to an agency like Dentsu?

    It’s not as if K-1 has been setting the world on fire for sponsorships this year, either. Sponsorship troubles has limited the amount of HERO’s shows they’ve ran this year (their 10/28 South Korea show aired at a shocking Midnight time slot on TBS).

  8. D. Capitated says:

    Let me state this first: DSE/ex-PRIDE/Fuji TV and all the rest have nothing, nothing at all to do with my argument. Nothing to do with what I stated. Where they initally got funding is utterly unimportant to what I said. Can you please move past trying to endlessly give history lessons?

    Ad time is sold heavily in advance.

    I am not talking about ad time. I am talking about physical ad space. Something they likely have because their event had no visibility. Something that is now at least somewhat valuable because the visability has shot up exponentially by any set of parameters you wish to discuss.

    a) Will sponsors be interested in spending money at all

    On what is likely to be the second highest rated program…hmmm…I’m sure it’ll be blank. It may not be tons of money but it’ll be able to make up for some of the theorized loss in buys as a result of the move, in spite of the fact that no one is gonna buy the show as is, should your estimations prove accurate.

    b) is it even logistically possible to get a heavy hitter sponsor to the table within a week to an agency like Dentsu?

    I’m not talking about ad time. Never was.

    It’s not as if K-1 has been setting the world on fire for sponsorships this year, either. It’s sponsorship troubles that has limited the amount of HERO’s shows they’ve ran this year (their 10/28 South Korea show aired at a shocking Midnight time slot on TBS).

    I’m sure K-1 has sold their time well in advance given the magnitude of the event they’re holding. And that’s great. I don’t think M-1/DSE/whomever is getting a red cent of the money from TV ad rates, but they very well might not have to pay for satellite use for a couple hours and will get increased visibility in media and of course with the live bouts with which to sell the one physical, tangible asset no one can take away from them for advertising.

  9. white ninja says:

    no wonder Tanigawa was so keen to work with the ex DSE people

    K1 now effectively “owns” the ex pride (at least in Japan) and certainly in a more meaningful sense than UFC (who actually paid to own the shell that was Pride)

    With this move, K1 now controls TV access for MMA in Japan

    This has always been a long term strategy of Ishii and now they have pulled it off

    nobody could give a shit about the pennies that drop for sponsors who put their names on the canvas – its peanuts and wont even pay for the airfares of Fedor and his team

  10. Zach Arnold says:

    no wonder Tanigawa was so keen to work with the ex DSE people

    K1 now effectively “owns” the ex pride (at least in Japan) and certainly in a more meaningful sense than UFC (who actually paid to own the shell that was Pride)

    With this move, K1 now controls TV access for MMA in Japan

    This has always been a long term strategy of Ishii and now they have pulled it off

    We have a winner. Someone put together the pieces of the puzzle here. The wildest part of this story is that Ishii is in jail while all of this is happening.

    Merry Christmas, Ninja. Haven’t talked to you in a while.

  11. white ninja says:

    merry christmas to you too Zach and all of your readers

    finally i get a reason to watch that pile of crap that k1 is putting on TBS – im dying to see how tbs is going to bury fuji tv’s baby, pride

    but how solid are k1’s foundations right now? maybe we’ll find out some time in 2008 – k1 is going for a big event in March to KO the emerging Yoshida love child, WVR, whose first event is rumoured in march as well

    WVR will lose an absolute shit load of money (just like the “ex DSE” jokers)

  12. SamScaff says:

    The problem is I still dont see K1 (Heros) being completely committed to MMA. Something about their selection of(MMA) talent is just not up to par.

    That being said, its ironic that many (including me) originally thought that the K1 participation with Yarennoka was out of good will for Japanese MMA pride (no pun intended). Now it seems like just a shrewd business decision.

    However, if Yarennoka-quality events (I dont care what you say, Zach) continue , I’ll be happy. But what do you think the chances are of that happening?

  13. D. Capitated says:

    nobody could give a shit about the pennies that drop for sponsors who put their names on the canvas – its peanuts and wont even pay for the airfares of Fedor and his team

    Obviously the people in charge see the revenue they create by getting on TV even if for just two bouts as being greater than the revenue lost by not being on TV. I do look forward to you using this opportunity for lots of points that have nothing to do with what I said, however.

    (additionally: Wasn’t it already obvious that K-1 was going to be heavily influential when it came to the Yarennoka show given the amount of talent on loan?)

  14. JThue says:

    DSE is being let back on TV. How is this not mentioned? I know it’s basically a K-1 show, and it’s only two matches, and only where K-1 talent is involved, but still, DSE IS BACK ON TV. If only for one show, the curse even new ownership of PRIDE couldn’t break was broken in the end. Hah!

  15. Dave says:

    Ok sure, they’ll lose SkyPerfectTV PPV buys and they might lose some ticket sales by this deal. But don’t you think that having these two Yarennoka! fights live on a mainstream network like TBS would at least be beneficial in the long run? They’ll go from not even having a blip on the radar to having a ton of exposure, advertising revenue or no advertising revenue. Isn’t this what the ex-DSE staff wanted anyway? PPV is unimportant in Japan.

  16. […] as thats where he came from. At this point, his fight is not scheduled to be televised on TBS (only the Fedor and Akiyama fights are), so fighting an inexperienced judoka is not gonna help the event’s ratings. I hope Bu-Kyung Jung […]

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