In The Know: Pay per view

Juan Manuel Marquez, left, and Manny Pacquiao. AP FILE PHOTO

Pay Per View (PPV) is a cable television service that allows viewers to buy access to a particular telecast, often a sporting event.

Boxing is one sport that draws huge PPV revenues. Besides the guaranteed purses, fighters also earn from PPV shares generated from their bouts. So more PPV buys mean more earnings for fighters.

At $59.95 per buy, Pacquiao-Marquez 4 in 2012 generated at least $70 million in revenue.

The PPV model of selling televised fights was exploited by boxing promotions company Top Rank in the 1970s and 1980s. Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum later used this knowledge to strike deals with various networks, including HBO, Showtime and ABC.

Over the years, Las Vegas-based Top Rank has produced exciting PPV bouts. It has promoted boxing’s most elite fighters, such as as boxing star Manny Pacquiao and three-time world champion Miguel Cotto. Its roster of rising stars includes Juan Manuel Lopez and Nonito Donaire Jr.

According to Top Rank’s website, the company has promoted more than 9,000 fights on more than 1,500 cards in 22 countries spread over six continents since its inception.

It produces an average of 36 major events each year, featuring championship bouts as well as 24 smaller events focusing on upper-level and up-and-coming fighters. Ana Roa, Inquirer Research

Sources: toprank.com, investopedia.com, Merriam Webster

RELATED STORIES:

‘$54-M discrepancy’ in Pacquiao PPV income

Pacquiao-Marquez III could be the biggest pay-per-view hit