Paramount Global has secured the exclusive U.S. rights to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in a groundbreaking deal worth $7.7 billion over seven years, beginning in 2026. This agreement marks a major shift in UFC’s distribution, moving away from the traditional pay-per-view model currently offered by ESPN to a new streaming-focused strategy centered on Paramount’s platform, Paramount+. All 43 annual UFC live events, including 13 major numbered events and 30 Fight Nights, will be available exclusively on Paramount+ at no additional cost to subscribers, with select marquee events also simulcast on the CBS broadcast network.

The deal comes just days after Paramount completed its merger with Skydance Media and represents the company’s first major sports rights acquisition under its new leadership. Paramount CEO David Ellison emphasized the uniqueness of partnering exclusively with a global sports powerhouse like UFC, highlighting the move as a key part of Paramount’s strategy to enhance viewer engagement and grow its streaming subscriber base.

For UFC, the deal ends the pay-per-view model common in the sport, greatly increasing accessibility for fans and potentially expanding the sport’s U.S. audience. The contract also doubles the yearly average payment compared to the $550 million ESPN currently pays, reflecting the growing value and popularity of UFC content.

TKO Group Holdings, UFC’s parent company, sees this agreement as a milestone in their decade-long growth, with TKO’s CEO Ari Emanuel affirming trust in Paramount’s vision to leverage technology to improve storytelling and the viewing experience.

This landmark deal reflects the rapidly evolving sports media landscape, with streaming services increasingly vying for premium content to attract and retain subscribers. Paramount’s move to bring UFC to its platform exclusively is a strong statement of commitment to live sports as a vital driver of engagement in the streaming age.

Key Points:

• Paramount secured UFC U.S. media rights for $7.7 billion over 7 years, starting 2026.
• UFC events will be exclusively streamed on Paramount+, ending ESPN’s pay-per-view model.
• The deal includes 13 major numbered events and 30 Fight Nights annually.
• Some marquee events will also air on CBS broadcast TV.
• The yearly payment doubles ESPN’s previous contract.
• The deal was announced shortly after Paramount’s merger with Skydance.
• Paramount aims to use UFC to boost Paramount+ subscriber growth and engagement.
• TKO Group (UFC parent company) supports the deal and foresees enhanced tech-enabled storytelling.
• Streaming services continue to disrupt traditional sports broadcasting models.

The July jobs report delivered a sobering message: the U.S. labor market is slowing sharply just as higher tariffs are starting to take effect. Employers added only 73,000 jobs last month, far below forecasts that had anticipated at least 100,000 new positions. This figure, coupled with a slight rise in unemployment to 4.2%, reflects a tangible shift in labor market momentum, with analysts noting a pronounced downtrend over recent months.

Not only was July weak, but downward revisions to May and June show that those months were even worse than first reported. Payroll growth has averaged just 35,000 jobs a month during the past quarter—the slowest expansion since the pandemic. Sectors hit hardest include professional services, manufacturing, and government, while job gains concentrated in areas like health care and retail aren’t easily accessible to displaced workers without specialized skills.

So, what roles are tariffs playing in this slowdown? President Trump’s wide-ranging tariffs continue to raise costs for both businesses and consumers. The Budget Lab at Yale estimates all 2025 U.S. tariffs, paired with retaliation from trading partners, will lower real GDP growth by 0.5 percentage points this year and next—and lift unemployment by 0.3 to 0.4 percentage points, translating to nearly 500,000 fewer jobs by the end of 2025. The price effects are direct: Yale’s analysis projects a 1.8% short-run boost in consumer prices, costing households an average of $2,400 annually if companies pass cost increases along. J.P. Morgan has echoed these warnings, highlighting how tariffs—especially on auto imports—will lift prices and act as a drag on overall GDP growth.

For American workers, these combined forces—sluggish job creation and pricier goods—mean a tough stretch ahead. Many are taking longer to find new employment, and the willingness to quit and switch jobs has declined as available opportunities dry up. Meanwhile, many job gains are in sectors requiring skills not easily acquired by laid-off workers, deepening a growing mismatch in the labor market.

Analysts caution that the combined drag from slow hiring and rising tariffs could put consumer spending—long a driver of U.S. economic health—at risk. If this weak spell persists, further Federal Reserve interest rate cuts may be on the table.

In short, slower job growth and higher tariffs are squeezing American workers from both sides: jobs are harder to find, and day-to-day expenses are rising. While the economy remains resilient for now, the risks of further slowdown, or even recession, loom if these trends deepen through the end of 2025.

The Shockwave Hits the Office

Artificial intelligence is no longer an abstract threat to the labor force—it’s rapidly destabilizing the white-collar world. Across finance, law, tech, consulting, marketing, HR, and beyond, millions of office jobs are being eliminated right now, not in some distant future. Headlines once filled with the fear of robots in factories now chronicle mass layoffs at software companies, major banks, and Fortune 500 giants. The so-called “white collar bloodbath” has begun, and experts warn the carnage will intensify over the next five years.

The Hard Numbers: How Bad Is It?

• Up to 50% of Entry-Level White Collar Jobs Gone by 2030
  Leaders from Anthropic, Nvidia, and other AI powerhouses now agree: as many as half of all white-collar entry roles could vanish in as little as five years, with unemployment spikes as high as 20% possible if society is unprepared.
• Widespread Layoffs:
  This isn’t a small-scale shift. In 2025 alone:
  • Microsoft cut 6,000 jobs, most in software and corporate operations.
  • IBM shed 8,000 positions from its HR and admin teams—with more to come.
  • Meta and Amazon have quietly trimmed their white-collar staff at every opportunity.

Where the Ax Falls First

Vulnerable Sectors and Roles

• Finance: Analysts, accountants, and even some managers are being replaced by AI that can process thousands of transactions or financial reports in seconds.
• Legal: Junior associates and paralegals face obsolescence from AI document review and contract generation tools.
• Marketing: Copywriting, analytics, and ad optimization are now handled by generative AI models at a fraction of the cost.
• Tech & Consulting: Junior programmers and entry-level consultants have seen demand for their roles plummet as companies deploy AI agents that can code, test, and generate insights 24/7.
• Customer Support & HR: Automated chatbots and AI HR agents are displacing thousands, from contact center representatives to benefits coordinators.

The New Hiring Freeze

Rather than a gradual evolution, the shift is abrupt and relentless. Many corporations are no longer hiring for traditional entry-level positions, and the old “career ladder” is disintegrating. Recent graduates now find themselves locked out of office jobs that were, until recently, reliable stepping stones to higher earnings.

Productivity Up, Opportunity Down

This wave of automation is happening in a time of robust profits for major firms. Productivity and revenue are soaring—yet hiring is grinding to a halt. This is not a recession linked to declining business but to rapid technological supersession. AI systems designed to augment humans are now replacing them, creating a structural shift with unpredictable social effects.

Is There Any Hope for White-Collar Workers?

• Upskilling Alone Isn’t Enough:
  While some suggest retraining for more technical or creative roles, the sheer speed and scope of AI replacement in entry and mid-level positions threaten to outpace any adaptation efforts.

• Rise of the Freelancer or Gig Worker:
  Those not replaced by AI may only find work in contract or gig jobs, often with less stability and benefits than the salaried white-collar roles they’re replacing.
• Pathways to Advancement Are Closing:
  Without entry-level jobs, younger generations may struggle to enter professions like law, accounting, or engineering at all.

What Happens Next?

AI’s encroachment on office work is accelerating, not slowing down. Even top tech executives are warning that society is unprepared for the scale of disruption ahead. Without urgent government action and new frameworks for economic security, the white-collar bloodbath may only be beginning.