FITE 24/7 FAST Service Punches Its Way Onto Roku Channel

By R. Thomas Umstead
last updated

Ad-supported service offers combat sports content

FITE TV will look to provide knockout content to The Roku Channel with the debut on the platform of its free, ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) service featuring combat sports programming, the two parties said Tuesday.

The FITE 24/7 service will deliver boxing, pro wrestling, mixed martial arts, bare-knuckle boxing and grappling matches from the FITE TV library to The Roku Channel, FITE said. Live content will also soon be available from FITE 24/7, including press conferences, weigh-ins and preliminary matches from marquee events.

“The quality and amount of action we provide on FITE 24/7 is stunning,” FITE TV VP of distribution Louis Lewow said in a statement. “Now, with The Roku Channel, the amazing content our partner promoters and athletes produce every week will now be available to the U.S households with an estimated 80 million people reached by the service.”

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The Roku Channel launch expands FITE 24/7’s distribution, which also includes carriage deals with LocalNow, Sports.TV, Sports Tribal, Rakuten, LG, FreeCast, Glewd, Freebie TV, Klowd and VivaLive TV, said FITE. ■

R. Thomas Umstead
R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.