NEW YORK, March 4, 2008 – Scientific Games [NASDAQ:SGMS] and its licensing subsidiary MDI Entertainment, today announced they have signed a multi-year licensing agreement with Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) organization. The global deal brings UFC names, logos, and merchandise to multiple lottery platforms including instant tickets and online terminal generated games. Key properties of the deal include UFC, PRIDE®, and The Octagon™. These brands are under an exclusive license for such lottery products from Zuffa, LLC, owner of the UFC brand.
“UFC is an ideal brand to help lotteries reach a new demographic, especially with males 18 to 34 years old,” said Steve Saferin, president of SG Properties and MDI. “The UFC fan base spans the globe and is growing significantly in Asia and Latin America. We encourage lotteries world wide to take advantage of this opportunity and tap into that new audience.”
“I know that the UFC will have an immediate impact in the lottery market,” said Dana White, UFC President. “We are confident that this partnership with Scientific Games, the clear leader in lottery sales and growth, will expand UFC exposure and brand recognition to new audiences here in the United States and throughout the world.”
Mixed martial arts (MMA), considered the fastest growing sport in the world, is an intense combat sport in which competitors use interdisciplinary forms of martial arts including Jiu-Jitsu, judo, karate, boxing, kickboxing, wrestling and other styles to their strategic and tactical advantage in a legal, regulated bout.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship brand is the world’s leading professional mixed martial arts organization, regulated by the most prestigious sports regulatory bodies in the United States. UFC live pay-per-view events take place at preeminent destinations including MGM Grand, MEN Arena, Mandalay Bay and 02 Arena, and consistently draw sell-out crowds with record-breaking gates.
The UFC has a strong presence on cable television with its reality series The Ultimate Fighter®, now heading into its seventh season. The Ultimate Fighter has reigned supreme for years in the coveted 18-34 male ratings demographic, and regularly enjoys higher ratings than traditional franchise sports. In partnership with Spike TV cable network, the UFC also will present five live UFC® Fight Night™ events and 13 taped programs of the popular program UFC: Unleashed™ annually.
About Scientific Games
Scientific Games Corporation is the leading integrated supplier of instant tickets, systems and services to lotteries worldwide, a leading supplier of server based gaming machines and systems, Amusement and Skill with Prize betting terminals, interactive sports betting terminals and systems, and wagering systems and services to pari-mutuel operators. It is also a licensed pari-mutuel gaming operator in Connecticut, Maine and the Netherlands and is a leading supplier of prepaid phone cards to telephone companies. Scientific Games’ customers are in the United States and more than 60 other countries. For more information about Scientific Games, please visit our web site at www.scientificgames.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release which are not historical facts constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements, including those relating to timing of contracts, renewals or other events, business plans and performance objectives, are based upon management’s current expectations, assumptions and estimates and are not guarantees of future results or performance. Actual results may differ materially from those projected in these statements due to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors, including, among other things: competition; material adverse changes in economic and industry conditions in our markets; technological change; protection of intellectual property; security and integrity of software and systems; laws and government regulation, including those relating to gaming licenses, permits and operations; seasonality; dependence on suppliers and manufacturers; factors associated with foreign operations; failure to retain, renew or perform on contracts; resolution of pending or future litigation; and other factors described from time to time in our filings with the SEC, including our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and except for our ongoing obligations under the U.S. federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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