PBC was initially promoted as an effort to return boxing to mainstream broadcast and cable television, as opposed to premium channels and pay-per-view.
The telecasts also employed various technologies, including a 360-degree camera rig above the ring, and sensor-equipped gloves and shorts for gathering additional statistics.
[2][3] In the United States, although popular among a niche audience, most major boxing events were relegated to premium television channels (such as HBO and Showtime) and pay-per-view, limiting their mainstream exposure to those who are willing to pay.
[3][4] PBC's chief operations officer Ryan Caldwell acknowledged that when broadly distributed, major sporting events can attract a large number of live viewers as event television, and in turn, advertisers: he explained that they were "whacking our key demographic with a lot of fees on premium cable and pay-per-view.
Caldwell also noted the success of WWE Network, which similarly subverted the professional wrestling promotion's traditionally PPV-oriented business model by offering its premium events and other archive programs as part of an over-the-top subscription service.
"[2][3] Executive producer Michael Marto felt that the in-arena experience of boxing events had been compromised by the focus on their television broadcasts, leading to a lack of "entertainment" for those attending in person.
[1] PBC cards on Spike were first broadcast as part of the network's combat sports brand Friday Night Lights Out.
[10] Antonio Tarver, who served as a member of Spike's broadcast team, explained that "I remember back in the day when fighters started their careers on NBC.
[15] On April 7, 2015, PBC announced a deal with SiriusXM to broadcast several of its cards on satellite radio via its Sports Zone channel.
Despite PBC's previous aversion to them, Fox and Showtime would also began producing pay-per-view events as part of their respective deals.
[25][26] On December 7, 2023, with Showtime winding down its sports division, PBC announced an exclusive agreement with Amazon Prime Video.
The performance of Marv Albert was panned, noting that he "[missed] a lot of the action", along with Steve Farhood's lack of contributions beyond scoring the fights.
"[39] Bleacher Report was similarly mixed, describing the atmosphere as being too "sterile" for a sport that "thrives on chaos", and that "the bland short walks to the ring and generic music presenting the fighters as interchangeable automatons [are] more NFL than WWE".
"[40] Bloody Elbow noted that PBC's initial ambitions "largely failed in the short-term; poor ratings, inactive fighters, questionable matchmaking, and planned event dates falling through (among other things) led to genuine concern that they would falter by the end of 2016.
"[42][43] On July 1, 2015, Top Rank filed a similar lawsuit against Haymon and Premier Boxing Champions investor Waddell & Reed, seeking an injunction to cease the events and $100 million in damages.
After receiving the amended complaint, Judge Walter allowed the case to continue and ruled against Haymon's motion to dismiss on January 6, 2016.
[1] In January 2017, the Golden Boy lawsuit was dismissed, with the court ruling that the promoter had "failed to demonstrate that there is a genuine issue of material fact as to any of their federal claims for relief".