🎉 15 Years of Streaming Ultimate – and We're Just Getting Started! 📺

This weekend’s AUC marks a special anniversary for ULTI.TV – with even MORE coverage and a look back at where it all began.

Hi All!

Mike here from ULTI.TV

This weekend is the 2025 Australian Ultimate Championships at West Beach in Adelaide — and it marks exactly 15 years since I jumped onto my car roof with a borrowed camera to film the 2010 AUC.

That moment started what’s become a lifelong mission: to provide affordable, high-quality coverage of Ultimate, to help grow the sport and share its stories. ULTI.TV was born from that drive (though it was originally called In The Zone... yeah, glad we changed that).

Fast forward to today — we have a European branch, a global crew, and together we’ve filmed over 3,200 games across the world, from grassroots tournaments to world championships.

ULTI.TV is live once again from Adelaide, South Australia this weekend

Back where it all began in 2010, we return to the birthplace of ULTI.TV to bring you the 2025 Australian Ultimate Championships Division I – the pinnacle of Australian Ultimate.

Held on the 24-27th of April, the event will see the top 12 Open teams and 12 Womens teams from across Australia and New Zealand go head to head.

Check out the playlist to see the times that are streams are going out.

Check out the Women’s and Open Previews with Dan and Greeny sharing insights and memes.

🎥 To Paywall or Not to Paywall

Most of our streams over the years have been free to watch, because we believe that’s the best way to grow Ultimate — more visibility, more players sticking around, and more chances for friends and family to connect with the sport we love.

But producing high-quality streams isn’t free. Just getting a crew on site involves flights, transport, food, accommodation… then there’s equipment, maintenance, and fair compensation for people who pause their lives to make these broadcasts possible.

We’ve kept costs low with lean production setups and by encouraging events to add a small fee per player to help fund coverage. And it works. Partners like BULA, UK Ultimate, NZ Ultimate, Swiss Ultimate, the Australian Flying Disc Federation and Tom’s Tourney all allocate budgets to keep streams free to watch for everyone.

But not all federations take that path.

Some, like WFDF and EUF (and since 2024 Windmill Tournament as as well), have chosen to work with paywall providers, hoping that subscription models would ease the financial burden on players. But let’s be honest — most of the paywall revenue still comes from players and their close circles. And no subscription model I’ve seen can meaningfully offset the thousands of dollars players already spend to compete (travel, food, accommodation, fees…).

If you asked players whether they’d prefer to pay $20–25 extra in their player fee so that everyone could watch for free — I reckon most would say yes.

🔓 An ULTI.TV Paywall???

Yes… and no.

The market is asking for it. We’re launching paid access to MORE coverage, starting next weekend at AUC 2025.
The main field will still be free to watch on YouTube — funded by the players, just like before.
But we’ll also offer a second field for paid subscribers.

This is about balance — about offering more while still fighting to keep the core of what we do freely accessible.

Later this year, we’ll bring the same model to London Invite, which will feature many 5 of the 8 World Games teams.

As we're going to be streaming a second field at Australian Ultimate Championships Division 1 we still appreciate the patrons and their contributions. That is why all GREATEST Members or above ULTI.TV Patrons will have access directly on Patreon.

At the end of the day, we’re a production company — and it’s up to tournament organisers and federations to decide whether streaming is in the budget.

So if you love free streams, tell your federation. Let them know that you’re happy for a slice of your player fees to go toward broadcast coverage. That’s how we keep this going and we grow to reach a point where more sponsors jump in.

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We’re still on this mission.
Still building.
Still streaming.
Still upgrading (working on Polecam v6 as I write this — pic of version 1 below!)

Polecam mk 1 circa 2012 (Made from some pipes I found at the end of my street)

If you believe in what we do, support us on Patreon, or join us as a member on YouTube, and most importantly — keep playing, watching and growing the game.

As always...

YEAH ULTIMATE!

– Mike Palmer
Founder, ULTI.TV