UFC® Announces Settlement of Piracy Lawsuit
Steven Messina Confesses to Illegally Sharing UFC Content
Las Vegas, Nev. ‒ Zuffa, LLC, d/b/a Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) today announced the resolution and settlement of its lawsuit against Steven Messina filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York by Zuffa, LLC’s anti-piracy counsel, Lonstein Law Office, P.C. Steven Messina, through his attorney, Michael Heitmann, confessed to his illegal behavior and apologized for his actions that resulted in the illegal sharing of UFC content. As part of the settlement, Messina was penalized by the UFC for an undisclosed amount and forced to surrender his computer hardware and software to UFC representatives. Additionally, Messina will turn over all records and information pertaining to piracy of UFC content and information related to other potential infringers. He must also cooperate with the UFC organization and law enforcement authorities in an effort to prevent others from stealing intellectual property.
When asked about the settlement, Messina said, “I apologize to the UFC for any damages incurred as a result of my actions in illegally distributing copyrighted UFC broadcasts. As a result of my confession for piracy of UFC’s protected content, I fully accept the terms of the settlement with the UFC.”
Messina also states, “I now realize the harm caused by my actions. It is my hope that I can use this difficult period as a learning experience as I move on with my life. I would also like to tell anyone pirating UFC broadcasts, either through illegal downloading or non-authorized streaming, that it is illegal and not worth the risk.”
As part of the settlement, Messina will provide details of his procedures that led to the unauthorized distribution of an estimated 200 hours of UFC content and will offer his records to the UFC to further prevent illegal usage or sharing of the company’s broadcasts.
Kirk Hendrick, UFC’s Chief Legal Officer, said, “The UFC organization is pleased with the outcome of this case and Messina’s willingness to assist the UFC’s efforts in protecting our intellectual property and broadcasts. With Messina’s apology and understanding, the UFC organization will learn more to help us continue uncovering illegal distribution of our content.”
Wheaties™ Fans Select Anthony Pettis as America’s NEXT Box Champion
Pettis wins Wheaties NEXT Challenge and becomes first MMA champion
to appear on the iconic cereal box
MINNEAPOLIS — With over 873,000 workouts logged over the last two months in support of the Wheaties NEXT Challenge, America has spoken by selecting UFC ® lightweight champion, Anthony Pettis to be featured nationally on the famed Wheaties box. This marks the first time in the cereal’s 91-year history that Wheaties put the power in the hands of the voters to choose the next elite athlete to appear on the box. Pettis’ Wheaties box will be available in early 2015.
Five world-class athletes from several emerging sports vied for the Wheaties box in an innovative way—by asking their fans to get out and move. The Wheaties NEXT Challenge, powered by the leader in Connected Fitness, MapMyFitness, encouraged fans to vote for their favorite athlete by logging workouts through the MapMyFitness platform—either manually documenting online, recording through any of the apps (MapMyFitness, MapMyRun, MapMyRide, MapMyWalk) or by connecting any one of the 400+ compatible devices. Over 71,000 people participated in the Wheaties NEXT Challenge with Pettis fans logging a total of 324,025 workouts, powering him to the top of the leaderboard.
“We are thrilled to welcome Anthony Pettis to the Wheaties family and congratulate him and his fans on their remarkable effort and accomplishment,” said David Oehler, marketing manager for Wheaties. “It has been inspiring to see communities across America get out and move this summer by supporting the athletes and the sports they love.”
Additionally, as part of Wheaties NEXT, Pettis selected and competed on behalf of two charities—the Gadzuric Foundation and Exploit No More. Each charity will receive a donation from General Mills based upon the number of workouts logged for Pettis.
A native of Milwaukee, WI, Pettis made his professional MMA debut in 2007 and instantly took the sport by storm, amassing an impressive 17-2 record. Known for his flashy, gravity-defying kicks, Pettis captured the UFC lightweight championship in 2013 and cemented himself as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. With his popularity at an all-time high, Pettis was chosen as a coach for the highly-anticipated 20th season of The Ultimate Fighter®, which premieres Sept. 10 on FOX Sports 1, featuring female athletes competing for the new UFC strawweight champion. Pettis will coach opposite top contender Gilbert Melendez and the two will meet Dec. 6 as he defends his UFC lightweight title for the first time.
Pettis competed against four other top athletes, each with an impressive amount of support and votes throughout the campaign. Motocross star Ryan Dungey placed second behind Pettis, followed by Christen Press of the U.S. National Women’s Soccer League, American blade runner Blake Leeper and lacrosse all-star Rob Pannell. Overall, 873,154 workouts were logged on behalf of the five athletes.
Fans can watch exclusive in-depth videos of each athlete by visiting www.wheaties.com or www.facebook.com/wheaties.
ABOUT WHEATIES
Wheaties has been committed to providing athletes with the nutrition they need to help them perform at their best for more than 90 years. The team behind “The Breakfast of Champions” has worked for decades to learn from food scientists, health professionals and athletes about what active people need to help fuel their active lifestyles. Some of the greatest athletes in American history have been honored by this first-ever whole grain breakfast cereal. Wheaties’ 100 percent whole grain flakes can be enjoyed a variety of ways including with low-fat chocolate milk for long-lasting energy as part of a complete breakfast. To view Wheaties-inspired recipes as well as a timeline of Wheaties Champions over the decades, visit www.wheaties.com.
ABOUT TEAM WHEATIES
Team Wheaties is a select group of elite athletes who represent the best in their respective sports. They were selected for the team based on their athletic achievements as well as how they personify being a champion both on and off the field of competition. Current Team Wheaties athletes include; UFC champion Anthony Pettis; motocross champion Ryan Dungey; speedskaters J.R. Celski and Heather Richardson; alpine skiing champion Mikaela Shiffrin; snowboard slope style champion Sage Kotsenburg; para athletes Evan Strong, Blake Leeper and Jessica Long; lacrosse MVP Rob Pannell; snowboard cross champion Nick Baumgartner; triathlete Hunter Kemper; decathlete R.J. McGinnis and climber Tommy Caldwell.
To find out more about Wheaties and all of the athletes on the team visit www.Wheaties.com or www.facebook.com/Wheaties.
The Breakfast of Champions and Wheaties are registered trademarks of General Mills
ABOUT MAPMYFITNESS
MapMyFitness is the leader in Connected Fitness—building the world’s largest digital fitness community by providing interactive tools to make fitness social, simple and rewarding. The flagship consumer brands—MapMyRun, MapMyRide, and MapMyWalk—are among the most popular apps on iOS and Android and the cloud-based platform has been supporting millions of users since it launched in 2007. MapMyFitness is an open platform, seamlessly integrating with more than 400 fitness tracking devices, sensors and wearables. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, MapMyFitness has over 100 employees and offers integrated marketing and advertising solutions, premium consumer subscription products, and a SaaS platform that helps partners of any size tap into advanced fitness tracking technology, workout databases, nutritional data, calorie calculators, and 160+ million of the best running, cycling and walking routes around the world. For more information, visit www.mapmyfitness.com. MapMyFitness is an Under Armour company.
UFC® LAUNCHES HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH CELEBRATION
UFC Fighters and Personalities take part in a 30-day celebration of tradition, culture and heritage in cities across the nation
Las Vegas, NV – The UFC®
announced today the launch of a nationwide celebration of Hispanic
Heritage Month featuring top Hispanic UFC stars. UFC heavyweight
champion Cain Velasquez and
The Ultimate Fighter® season one winner Diego Sanchez
lead more than a dozen UFC fighters and personalities on a month-long
celebration in honor of Hispanic heritage and to give fans the
opportunity to meet their favorite Hispanic fighters.
UFC partners and affiliates such as FOX Deportes, Metro PCS, Comcast,
COX and Anheuser-Busch will also take part in the celebration. In
addition, the UFC will team up with the MLS’ Houston Dynamo as well as
the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball, for
exciting fan events at upcoming sporting events. Along with the
announcement of the UFC selling out UFC 180 in Mexico City on Nov. 15 and the breakthrough success of the first season of
The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America, Hispanic Heritage Month will
be the perfect celebration of diversity in the UFC and will showcase
amazing Hispanic athletes proudly representing their culture.
UFC fans in Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas,
Phoenix, Miami, New York and Washington, D.C. will have the opportunity to be a part of the “Despierta tu Instinto Guerrero” festivities from Sept. 13 through Oct. 13, 2014.
Festivities will feature a multi-city promotional tour
that will include press days, community activities and engagements,
festival activations with sponsors and affiliates, and additional social
media activities for all fans to enjoy.
“Hispanic Heritage Month is a great opportunity for
the UFC to reaffirm our commitment to the Hispanic community and to
celebrate a new generation of Hispanic American athletes,” said UFC
President Dana White. “Hispanics are some of the
most passionate and loyal fans of combat sports. We are proud of our
Hispanic athletes as they represent their heritage each time they step
into the Octagon and we want to share their amazing talents and stories
with UFC fans.”
The UFC kicked off the tour at the StubHub Center
in Carson, Calif. on Sunday, Aug. 31 at the Chivas USA vs. L.A. Galaxy
pre-game event, the Chiva Town fan zone. Fans had the opportunity to
meet featherweight fighter Ricardo Lamas, who
will compete in the sold out, first ever event in Mexico City, UFC 180,
as well as Octagon Girl™ Arianny Celeste.
From Sept. 15 through Oct. 15,
Americans celebrate and recognize the contributions made and the
important presence of Hispanics to the United States. Celebrations of
the group's heritage and culture begin
on Sept. 15, the anniversary of independence for five Latin American
countries — Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua.
In addition, Mexico declared its independence on Sept. 16 and Chile on Sept. 18.
With more than 40.3 million UFC fans around the
world, 18 percent of the UFC’s total fan base is Hispanic, outpacing
major U.S. sports leagues including the NBA, MLB, and the NFL in
concentration of Hispanic fans. The UFC has experienced
considerable growth with 15.2 million unique Hispanic viewers consuming
UFC related programming.
The UFC looks forward to inspiring its fans beyond
ethnicity or gender to “awaken their warrior instinct” or “Despierta Tu
Instinto Guerrero” by giving them the opportunity to unite with their
favorite fighters and personalities in celebrating
culture, tradition and the fighter within them.
Hispanic Heritage Month events:
Sept. 19, 20 and 21 in WASHINGTON, DC
Sept. 22 and 23 in PHOENIX
Sept. 24 and 25 CHICAGO
Oct. 12 and 13 in MIAMI
*Fighters are subject to change
For additional information please visit
UFC.com, and follow UFC on Twitter @ufc and @UFCenEspanol.
