 The Ultimate Fighting Championship is just one day away from its biggest event ever, UFC 200. The fight card puts more champions into the ring on a single night than any event in UFC history. But there's another reason all eyes are on the UFC's 200th major event. Wisefeds report that the promotion's parent company, Zufa, is on the verge of being sold for as much as $4 billion, capping one of the greatest turnarounds in business history. Now, when Zufa acquired the UFC back in 2001, it cost just $2 million. The company was banned from television in 36 states and nearly bankrupt, so how did it end up being worth billions? Some of its success is driven by simple sports promotion, but there's another aspect here, technology. The UFC has evolved from an ordinary sports promoter into one of the most forward-thinking digital media companies in the television market. Take this weekend's fight card in Vegas. Subscribers to UFC Fight Pass, the company's streaming platform, get to watch the first three fights online. Then the action kicks over to basic cable, you can watch on Fox Sports 1. Finally, for the main card, you have to pony up $50 for the pay-per-view. No other major sports league spreads a single night of action across so many different platforms. The UFC's streaming platform, Fight Pass, also represents one of the company's most interesting opportunities for growth. The $10-month service launched back in December of 2013, and now it's available worldwide. As an added lure for Fight fans, the UFC acquired and uploaded a massive library of archival content, basically the entire history of modern MMA from 1990 to the present. In much the same way Netflix packed its library with older movies and TV series. The UFC site also serves as an aggregator for streaming MMA leagues that aren't big enough to build their own platforms. Like Netflix or Amazon Prime, the UFC can afford to push programming with a small but dedicated audience. Along with small MMA shows, it's even branched out into doing kickboxing and grappling matches. It's the definition of narrow casting. What's fascinating about this story is that the UFC's success is as much a matter of necessity as strategy. When it was banned from television, the UFC had to find new avenues for distribution beyond traditional television. Fifteen years later, it's reaping the rewards of that blackout. Flexing its muscle is one of the most agile digital media companies in the world today.
 The Ultimate Fighting Championship is just one day away from its biggest event ever, UFC 200.
 The fight card puts more champions into the ring on a single night than any event in UFC history.
 But there's another reason all eyes are on the UFC's 200th major event.
 Wisefeds report that the promotion's parent company, Zufa, is on the verge of being sold for as much as $4 billion,
 capping one of the greatest turnarounds in business history.
 Now, when Zufa acquired the UFC back in 2001, it cost just $2 million.
 The company was banned from television in 36 states and nearly bankrupt, so how did it end up being worth billions?
 Some of its success is driven by simple sports promotion, but there's another aspect here, technology.
 The UFC has evolved from an ordinary sports promoter into one of the most forward-thinking digital media companies in the television market.
 Take this weekend's fight card in Vegas.
 Subscribers to UFC Fight Pass, the company's streaming platform, get to watch the first three fights online.
 Then the action kicks over to basic cable, you can watch on Fox Sports 1.
 Finally, for the main card, you have to pony up $50 for the pay-per-view.
 No other major sports league spreads a single night of action across so many different platforms.
 The UFC's streaming platform, Fight Pass, also represents one of the company's most interesting opportunities for growth.
 The $10-month service launched back in December of 2013, and now it's available worldwide.
 As an added lure for Fight fans, the UFC acquired and uploaded a massive library of archival content,
 basically the entire history of modern MMA from 1990 to the present.
 In much the same way Netflix packed its library with older movies and TV series.
 The UFC site also serves as an aggregator for streaming MMA leagues that aren't big enough to build their own platforms.
 Like Netflix or Amazon Prime, the UFC can afford to push programming with a small but dedicated audience.
 Along with small MMA shows, it's even branched out into doing kickboxing and grappling matches.
 It's the definition of narrow casting.
 What's fascinating about this story is that the UFC's success is as much a matter of necessity as strategy.
 When it was banned from television, the UFC had to find new avenues for distribution beyond traditional television.
 Fifteen years later, it's reaping the rewards of that blackout.
 Flexing its muscle is one of the most agile digital media companies in the world today.