NBCU's Peacock to become exclusive home of WWE Network in US

[cero2k]

NBCU'S PEACOCK TO BECOME EXCLUSIVE HOME OF WWE NETWORK IN US
source: https://www.f4wonline.com/wwe-news/nbcu ... -us-331161

Starting in March, the WWE Network in the United States will move from being a standalone service to part of NBCUniversal's Peacock.

It was announced on Monday that Peacock and WWE have reached a multi-year deal that gives Peacock exclusive streaming rights to the WWE Network in the United States. Peacock launched in 2020 and is NBCUniversal's streaming service. NBCUniversal is also one of WWE's television partners, with Raw and NXT airing on the USA Network.

The WWE Network will launch on Peacock on Thursday, March 18. The deal includes all WWE pay-per-views being available on Peacock live and on-demand. The first PPV of the Peacock era will be Fastlane on Sunday, March 21. WrestleMania 37 will take place over two nights on Saturday, April 10 and Sunday, April 11.

"The companies will share details on managing customer accounts closer to the Peacock launch in March," the press release announcing the deal stated. "WWE Network, including all PPVs, will be available on Peacock Premium for $4.99 [per month] - a $5.00/month savings-where members will enjoy access to the entire WWE and Peacock catalog, more than 47,000 hours of premium programming. For an ad-free experience, Peacock Premium Plus will be available for $9.99."

WWE Network programming will be available on Peacock on-demand and on a 24/7 channel. Peacock and WWE hyped that the roll-out of more than 17,000 hours of new, original, and library WWE Network content will begin on March 18, with that including:

All live pay-per-view events including WrestleMania and SummerSlam.
Original series like Steve Austin Broken Skull Sessions, Undertaker: The Last Ride, and the all-new WWE Icons.
In-ring shows like NXT, NXT UK, and WWE 205 Live, as well as replays of Raw and SmackDown.
WWE Network archives, including every WWE, WCW, and ECW pay-per-view event in history.
Groundbreaking documentaries, including WWE 24, WWE Untold, and WWE 365.
And, starting in 2022, one signature documentary annually.
“NBCUniversal has a long-standing relationship with WWE that began nearly 30 years ago with Monday Night Raw on USA. WWE has always tapped into the cultural zeitgeist with spectacular live events and larger-than-life characters, and we are thrilled to be the exclusive home for WWE Network and its millions of fans across the country,” said Rick Cordella, Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer, Peacock. “WWE Network is a transformative addition to the platform and complements Peacock’s massive catalog of iconic movies and shows, as well as the best live news and sports, from NBCUniversal and beyond.”

“We are thrilled to further the long-standing and trusted partnership WWE has with NBCUniversal,” said Nick Khan, WWE President and Chief Revenue Officer. “Peacock is an innovative platform that will enable us to showcase our most significant events, including WrestleMania, and provide the extraordinary entertainment our fans have come to expect with the combination of premium WWE content, live sports, news, films, and television programs.”

The WWE Network first launched in 2014.

[Big Red Machine]

Looking at the numbers, they say there are 47,000 hours, but that they will have 17,000 for the original roll-out. Are we (temporarily) losing access to some stuff?

[cero2k]

Looking at the numbers, they say there are 47,000 hours, but that they will have 17,000 for the original roll-out. Are we (temporarily) losing access to some stuff?

You maaay be losing all the WCW stuff, and maybe all the FOX stuff. Peacock is an NBC thing, so I don't know if there's interested in things like that. You're also losing all the documentary stuff too I'm guessing.

[Big Red Machine]

Looking at the numbers, they say there are 47,000 hours, but that they will have 17,000 for the original roll-out. Are we (temporarily) losing access to some stuff?

You maaay be losing all the WCW stuff, and maybe all the FOX stuff. Peacock is an NBC thing, so I don't know if there's interested in things like that. You're also losing all the documentary stuff too I'm guessing.

That's pretty annoying (on principal at least. In practice, I have no interest in going back and watching any of the Fox stuff).

[cero2k]

[cero2k]

UPDATE

WWE's coffers are reportedly getting even more full as both the Wall Street Journal and Sports Business Journal reported Monday that the deal to move WWE Network under the NBCU Peacock Premium streaming service is for five years and more than $1 billion.

WWE president Nick Khan told The Wrap that the deal wasn't due to cost cutting, but more for exposure:

"Peacock is free in the [24 million] Comcast cable and Cox cable homes, as I’m sure you know, so…for the first time ever, WrestleMania, which is our Super Bowl, is going to be available for free to those homes. In addition to that, it cuts the cost for our consumers from $9.99 a month for WWE Network to $4.99 a month on the ad-supported tier of Peacock, where they’ll get not only WWE but EPL (English Premier League), “The Office,” Dick Wolf and so many other titles."

Khan also said WWE is happy with their Fox deal with multiple years left, so nothing has changed there. He later told SBJ's John Ourand they are done doing deals in the U.S. "for a while" and that this is a multi-year deal that extends past their current TV contracts with NBCU and Fox. He said they spoke to several media companies about a deal but WWE's thirty-year relationship with NBC made a difference.

The news broke Monday morning that in the United States, WWE Network is moving to Peacock's premium tier starting on March 18th at potentially half the cost as their ad-supported service is $4.99/month while their ad-free option is $9.99/month.

Peacock chief revenue officer Rick Cordella told The Wrap that they wanted to expanded the accessibility of WWE content and experience a "halo effect" for WWE viewers for other content:

"So our overall goal, and why I think NBCU decided to move forward with this deal, is that we believe we can expand the accessibility of this content, right? That we can — through NBCU marketing, through the outlets that we have, all the various media outlets, through the price point reduction, through the addition of content — that we can grow this audience significantly that currently watched it. And that will have downstream impact to the rest of WWE and those TV ratings, hopefully, that you see on linear television, as well as to Peacock. There is a halo effect to those users coming in for WrestleMania, but then sticking around and watching “The Office,” watching “Yellowstone,” watching some of the great content we have in the 30,000 hours that are now bundled in with their subscription price."

Cordella also spoke to SBJ about the deal and mentioned a live WrestleMania as a cornerstone of the service, which would indicate a big promotional push following the changeover.

[Big Red Machine]

I understand the accessibility argument, but is giving WrestleMania away for free really a selling point? Isn't the idea of accessibility that people will be able to easily find your thing and think it's cool and then be willing to PAY a few extra bucks for WrestleMania?

[cero2k]

Listening to WOR today, I got the impression that everything that is currently on the network will make it in, and since the rest of the world will still have a network, that anything going forward would likely be the same for both services.

The thing that seems doubtful is that with no more incentive for WWE to 'sign up people', the chances of seeing all those indie promotions that sold their souls, or obscure old stuff like AWA, they're likely just gonna focus on new content

[Big Red Machine]

Listening to WOR today, I got the impression that everything that is currently on the network will make it in, and since the rest of the world will still have a network, that anything going forward would likely be the same for both services.

The thing that seems doubtful is that with no more incentive for WWE to 'sign up people', the chances of seeing all those indie promotions that sold their souls, or obscure old stuff like AWA, they're likely just gonna focus on new content

I don't think anyone is subscribing to the Network for the indie stuff. At least with EVOLVE, they seem to use that to mostly hype up guys they have (less so with wXw), so I can still see them uploading that.

[KILLdozer]

Why do y'all talk more about the background stuff like networks and content instead of the GOT DANG FUCKIN' WRESTLING?!?!?

YOU MANIACS WILL GO ON FOR 8 PAGES ABOUT WHY GUYS TUNED OUT DURING THE SECOND HOUR OF AEW!!!!

[cero2k]

I don't think anyone is subscribing to the Network for the indie stuff. At least with EVOLVE, they seem to use that to mostly hype up guys they have (less so with wXw), so I can still see them uploading that.

the idea with the indie stuff was that it would be part of a $14.99 tier in the wwe network for 'hardcore' fans, that was a Barrios idea. so it wasn't necessarily to get new sign ups, but for fans like you to increase to get wXw and EVOLVE and PROGRESS.

[Big Red Machine]

I don't think anyone is subscribing to the Network for the indie stuff. At least with EVOLVE, they seem to use that to mostly hype up guys they have (less so with wXw), so I can still see them uploading that.

the idea with the indie stuff was that it would be part of a $14.99 tier in the wwe network for 'hardcore' fans, that was a Barrios idea. so it wasn't necessarily to get new sign ups, but for fans like you to increase to get wXw and EVOLVE and PROGRESS.

Which is only a strategy that makes sense if you're uploading everything those promotions do, which WWE hasn't come close to. Between this and the trying to artificially inflate the "hours of engagement" by making the PPVs drag on for so long, I'm amazed that they couldn't find someone else to stick in Barrios' role who actually understood how fans act. This new Nick Khan guy seems on top of his sh*t.

[cero2k]

Which is only a strategy that makes sense if you're uploading everything those promotions do, which WWE hasn't come close to. Between this and the trying to artificially inflate the "hours of engagement" by making the PPVs drag on for so long, I'm amazed that they couldn't find someone else to stick in Barrios' role who actually understood how fans act. This new Nick Khan guy seems on top of his sh*t.

they fired the only person that cared for those promotions being in the network, they never made it in because McMahon doesn't give a shit about them. She never even got the strategy to start.

Khan is top of his shit in terms of what makes money for WWE, not on what fans want. It's what he was hired for.

[Big Red Machine]

Which is only a strategy that makes sense if you're uploading everything those promotions do, which WWE hasn't come close to. Between this and the trying to artificially inflate the "hours of engagement" by making the PPVs drag on for so long, I'm amazed that they couldn't find someone else to stick in Barrios' role who actually understood how fans act. This new Nick Khan guy seems on top of his sh*t.

they fired the only person that cared for those promotions being in the network, they never made it in because McMahon doesn't give a shit about them. She never even got the strategy to start.

Who was the person who cared about those promotions being on the Network?

Also, I agree that Vince doesn't give a sh*t about the indy promotions being on the Network, but I think it's apathy instead of antagonism (and I think he's the same way about the old stuff, especially outside of his and maybe his dad's stuff). It won't increase without someone internally pushing it, but I don't think it will go away, either, because no one is opposed to it enough to shut it down.

[cero2k]

Who was the person who cared about those promotions being on the Network?

Also, I agree that Vince doesn't give a sh*t about the indy promotions being on the Network, but I think it's apathy instead of antagonism (and I think he's the same way about the old stuff, especially outside of his and maybe his dad's stuff). It won't increase without someone internally pushing it, but I don't think it will go away, either, because no one is opposed to it enough to shut it down.

Barrios and the other exec that was behind the network. It's not that they wanted these specific promotions in the network, but they wanted an indie presence that they could sell to the hardcores at a higher price

I don't think it's a matter of 'not wanting it anymore', but more as a we don't need it anymore. Like, i don't think they're going to remove anything, it may take ages to get the old AWA or Mid-Atlantic stuff in, it's not the priority, but as long as it's already in the system and digitized, it's likely going in at one point. I think it's more like they're not going to put any further effort into bringing old libraries, paying rights for indies to be in the network, digitizing old stuff that is expensive and time consuming. I think all efforts going forward are gonna be new content about WWE or WWE re-writing history

[Big Red Machine]

Who was the person who cared about those promotions being on the Network?

Also, I agree that Vince doesn't give a sh*t about the indy promotions being on the Network, but I think it's apathy instead of antagonism (and I think he's the same way about the old stuff, especially outside of his and maybe his dad's stuff). It won't increase without someone internally pushing it, but I don't think it will go away, either, because no one is opposed to it enough to shut it down.

Barrios and the other exec that was behind the network. It's not that they wanted these specific promotions in the network, but they wanted an indie presence that they could sell to the hardcores at a higher price

I don't think it's a matter of 'not wanting it anymore', but more as a we don't need it anymore. Like, i don't think they're going to remove anything, it may take ages to get the old AWA or Mid-Atlantic stuff in, it's not the priority, but as long as it's already in the system and digitized, it's likely going in at one point. I think it's more like they're not going to put any further effort into bringing old libraries, paying rights for indies to be in the network, digitizing old stuff that is expensive and time consuming. I think all efforts going forward are gonna be new content about WWE or WWE re-writing history

I that's correct, but the easiest stuff for them to upload under those criterion would be the modern indy stuff (especially EVOLVE), because 1) it's already digital, and 2) at least in the case of EVOLVE, but I'd suspect with wXw, PROGRESS, and ICW, too, going, at least for the past five-ten years or so, all of the music they've been using is licensed, and (per my understanding, at least) music dubbing and digitization is where most of the work falls in terms of getting something ready for the Network.

[cero2k]

Another thought I heard today. In theory, the functionality to search for a specific wrestler or matches may be potentially lost,

[Big Red Machine]

Another thought I heard today. In theory, the functionality to search for a specific wrestler or matches may be potentially lost,

That stuff hasn't worked well for years. It's no worse than, say, YouTube, but that's not an excuse for WWE. It's an indictment of both.