Source: PWTorch
By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

February 3, 2017
TNA Impact Wrestling last night drew 299,000 viewers, once again dipping below the 300,000 number for the third time out of five weeks in 2017. The high point, two weeks ago, drew 310,000 viewers.

The January average was 296,000. The fall average was 325,000.

Keller’s Analysis: There is some serious lost momentum after the hodgepodge of compilation shows and off-beat formats over the holidays as the ownership situation was transitioning and there was a lack of fresh new footage. While Raw and Smackdown ratings are up this January compared to September through December 2016, Impact is down. Only once did Impact surpass 400,000 viewers in the 56 weeks it’s been on Pop TV, back on July 5, 2016. The Pop TV president had boasted they’d get back to 1 million viewers, and the show is moving the wrong direction if that’s the goal. That said, Impact remains on the higher end of Pop TV viewership numbers.

Big Red Machine wrote:While Raw and Smackdown ratings are up this January compared to September through December 2016, Impact is down.

this comparison is irrelevant, one is building towards WM and they bring in Lesnar/Goldberg/Taker/etc on a weekly basis in order to achieve those ratings.

Also, it seems like people were expecting that just because Anthem came in Dixie is out, TNA would change over night. The transition will be slow, but it will come in some areas. They barely re-added Mantel as head of creative, according to JR they want to re-push the X-Division since 205 hasn't been that strong.

cero2k wrote:

Big Red Machine wrote:While Raw and Smackdown ratings are up this January compared to September through December 2016, Impact is down.

this comparison is irrelevant, one is building towards WM and they bring in Lesnar/Goldberg/Taker/etc on a weekly basis in order to achieve those ratings.

Also, it seems like people were expecting that just because Anthem came in Dixie is out, TNA would change over night. The transition will be slow, but it will come in some areas. They barely re-added Mantel as head of creative, according to JR they want to re-push the X-Division since 205 hasn't been that strong.

No, but you'd expect there to be some interest in the changeover. There hasn't been. The point of the comparison was to show that while interest in the top company is up, it's not trickling down to TNA as one might expect. Compare this ROH who supposedly did a much better buyrate than expected for Final Battle.

Big Red Machine wrote:No, but you'd expect there to be some interest in the changeover. There hasn't been. The point of the comparison was to show that while interest in the top company is up, it's not trickling down to TNA as one might expect. Compare this ROH who supposedly did a much better buyrate than expected for Final Battle.

yeah, but ROH's rating didn't have to do with WWE either, it was their own build up, it was Cody coming in, it was their own merit. Rumble hadn't happened by then.

There WAS a interest the first week they came back for TNA, then it went back to normal because Anthem TNA so far is still Dixie TNA since they haven't started the actual change, all the current tapings still happened under the previous style, next set of tapings will be the ones that have Mantel, that will be done under 4 day schedules. Maybe the show will change, maybe not

RAW and Smackdown going up only reflects interest in WM, not wrestling overall. The people that are already watching TNA/ROH/Indies are already following WWE, and the ones that come back are because NFL is over and there's no wrestling on mondays anyway, and because of WWE. Neither of those fanbases care about TNA or ROH anyway. hell, even NXT is down