John from Cincinnati Posted May 21, 2018 Share Posted May 21, 2018 Wrestling fan culture on the internet and the tastes of the diehards has had and will continue to have a profound effect on which talents WWE features. Some less-than-ideal booking (a universal problem) and the prominence of Roman Reigns aside, I think WWE does a good deal to cater to many diehard preferences. Call me crazy, but I've never seen my relationship with the WWE as a consumer of their product to be adversarial. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVA Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 If this means Kevin Dunn now has enough money to retire comfortably, I am FOR IT. 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PetrolCB Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 11 minutes ago, EVA said: If this means Kevin Dunn now has enough money to retire comfortably, I am FOR IT #ALL IN. 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greggulator Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 3 hours ago, sydneybrown said: I think it has less to do with "the WWE has a great product" and more with FOX looking at grabbing any kind of live programming that will help keep them relevant to an audience that is watching less and less TV. They aren't locking up MLS or arena football or lacrosse or NCAA sports or any number of other properties that could be broadcast live and purchased at a lower price tag. They bought the WWE's rights for $1 billion. The WWE's product has a lot to do with that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranesi Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 1 hour ago, (BP) said: "Now that we've taught Kubiac not to rely on cutoff sleeve flannels, this Fashion File is closed!" "Not so fast, Breezy. I hear there's a 30-year-old paper boy who's still wearing horizontal stripes." "Let's roll." 3 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranesi Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 Are we officially in the next boom period? Like the biggest and maybe the first since '99? But we're not noticing because we're paying attention to different things than the industry is? And if so, is this like that thing where metal heads all remember late 70s, early '80s Iron Maiden as the high point in their career, but if you ask the band themselves they're like "last year we played for 130,000 people in Buenos Aires and then 90,000 in Prague...this is the golden era of Iron Maiden, mate!" 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 No. We're just in a period of inflated sports tv deals. You couldn't get away from wrestling in 99. There were shirts everywhere. People were talking about it left and right. It was hip and people who wouldn't watch it a few years before or a few years after watched it regularly. Totally different world. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spritenaut 32 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 I know the contract isn't finalized, but I hope Vince signed some sort of paperwork before that Lashley segment aired. If that doesn't scare off Fox, nothing will. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joseph2112 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 17 minutes ago, Greggulator said: They aren't locking up MLS or arena football or lacrosse or NCAA sports or any number of other properties that could be broadcast live and purchased at a lower price tag. They bought the WWE's rights for $1 billion. The WWE's product has a lot to do with that. They already are a part of the MLS TV contract. This is similar to NASCAR where attendance and ratings are plummeting and fans are generally displeased yet the sport gets a gigantic TV deal. They aren't in any major sports ballpark money wise, not even close, but still this is still a stunning victory for them. Yet I think it has very little to do with the actual product if that means a show that makes you want to tune in weekly. But it is a great product if you want to include the fact that it is pro wrestling to most people. It's a giant monopoly and pro wrestling maintains the uniqueness that whatever itch it scratches on people it cannot be satisfied elsewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Fowler Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 We have an indie wrestling boom and we have WWE becoming a self-sustainingsustaining money making entity almost regardless of it's product. It's not in any real way comparable to any previous era, boom or bust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spritenaut 32 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 The best thing about this is that WWE will finally be able to pay the wrestlers benefits and a retirement plan and do away with the "independent contraction" nonsense. Right? 5 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Fowler Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 21 minutes ago, Keep Calm, Akira Hokuto On said: The best thing about this is that WWE will finally be able to pay the wrestlers benefits and a retirement plan and do away with the "independent contraction" nonsense. Right? Able to? Of course. Willing to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SorceressKnight Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 40 minutes ago, Matt D said: No. We're just in a period of inflated sports tv deals. You couldn't get away from wrestling in 99. There were shirts everywhere. People were talking about it left and right. It was hip and people who wouldn't watch it a few years before or a few years after watched it regularly. Totally different world. But on the contrary- pro wrestling gets talked about regularly on any "news site" that's relatively geeky. If there's a "geek culture" store, they probably also carry WWE merchandise...and in cases like Hot Topic, also New Japan Pro Wrestling. For better or worse, pro wrestling has become "the official pro sport of nerd culture." This has also led to why the war for the diehards has lost, because by and large in this century we've found that geeks are terrible, terrible people- and WWE has felt the blow worse than much of entertainment has. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joseph2112 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 3 minutes ago, SorceressKnight said: and WWE has felt the blow worse than much of entertainment has. Or you could say that the fact they have their die hard, geek fans are the reason they just got a billion dollars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clintthecrippler Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 I am curious if FOX valuing WWE programming as a main network commodity with that much value will have trickle down effect and lead to bigger cable deals for some of the larger non-WWE leagues, like when UFC initially exploded for Spike TV and led to folks chasing after Bellator and Strike Force in its wake. I am curious if this will lead to something like NJPW on Showtime or Ring of Honor on ESPN, or if it will just reinforce the general notion to the television industry that "Wrestling = WWE" and no one else benefits in terms of TV profile. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odessasteps Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 23 minutes ago, SorceressKnight said: For better or worse, pro wrestling has become "the official pro sport of nerd culture." I thought that was E-sports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sydneybrown Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 22 minutes ago, clintthecrippler said: I am curious if this will lead to something like NJPW on Showtime or Ring of Honor on ESPN, or if it will just reinforce the general notion to the television industry that "Wrestling = WWE" and no one else benefits in terms of TV profile. Well, until Sinclair sells ROH, Ring of Honor isn't going anywhere past its own network affiliates. It's going to be interesting for the Sinclair-owned FOX stations when they start airing WWE and their rival on the same station, possibly hours apart from each other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammerva Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 1 hour ago, Keep Calm, Akira Hokuto On said: I know the contract isn't finalized, but I hope Vince signed some sort of paperwork before that Lashley segment aired. If that doesn't scare off Fox, nothing will. Oh come on you know there are a ton of people in the "News" department of FOX that probably spit milk out of their nose at the thought of 3 obviously straight black women dressed as women Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Green Meanie Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 So do you think this may spawn some kind of package deal to also get the XFL when it returns as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DreamBroken Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 with SDL landing such a huge deal, I'm confused as to why NBCU seemingly just gave it up. Wasn't it that NBC/USA chose not to renew SDL as if they didn't want it anymore? Seems odd when it's always been a hit for syfy/usa. Regardless, I hope it does for sure stay live as that did make a difference ever since the move a few years back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Fowler Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 48 minutes ago, DreamBroken said: with SDL landing such a huge deal, I'm confused as to why NBCU seemingly just gave it up. Wasn't it that NBC/USA chose not to renew SDL as if they didn't want it anymore? Seems odd when it's always been a hit for syfy/usa. Regardless, I hope it does for sure stay live as that did make a difference ever since the move a few years back. Because they reportedly agreed to pick up RAW at $240 million, when they had been paying $160 million for both shows this year. They just weren't willing to give WWE $400-500 million a year. And WWE is getting $445 anyway, so good on them. And, hey, who knows, maybe Amazon or Facebook will still make some sort of offer that gets them even more money (they were both reportedly in the SD bidding, and presumably one of them is who made the even larger offer WWE turned down.) Maybe they try to shop NXT to one of them, or even some new show. Maybe the U.S. rights to that U.K. show they keep trying to get going. Who knows? Throw in the Saudi money, the various international rights, and the various other revenue streams... 2020 they are gonna post a profit in the 9 figures unless they dramatically increase spending. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Cincinnati Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 2 hours ago, odessasteps said: I thought that was E-sports. I keep hoping that’s not a real thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Fowler Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 12 minutes ago, West Newbury Bad Boy said: I keep hoping that’s not a real thing. The NBA has its own professional 2K league now, I think the ship has sailed on your hopes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wyld Samurai Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 F- yeah, man! The pyro is coming back! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niners Fan in CT Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 The Mixed Match Challenge was cool but it didnt really work.. by the end WWE was completely phoning it in. Facebook isn't ready to be in the streaming business. Their "Watch" section was laughably bad and an eyesore. Crazy how far they are behind Amazon and Netflix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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