WWE has plenty of historical past, and so they want someplace to place all of it. In spite of everything, all the pieces was recorded and followers need the power to look the archives. With ongoing media rights offers, the touchdown pad for all that content material is one other query.
The way forward for WWE’s large content material library is getting more durable to trace. Throughout a latest episode of Wrestling Observer Reside, Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer lately broke down how WWE’s offers with Netflix and ESPN are reshaping the place followers will truly have the ability to watch wrestling historical past.
The largest takeaway is timing. Netflix solely has entry to WWE pay-per-views by way of September 2024. After that time, any new pay-per-view content material will air on ESPN and keep there.
“The pay-per-views have been thought-about—so far as the library goes—essentially the most worthwhile asset. So essentially the most worthwhile asset is off the desk.”
Dave Meltzer defined that Netflix’s present entry is proscribed and short-term, whereas ESPN’s position expands after September.
“Properly, for Netflix, they have the WWE pay-per-view library not less than up by way of September, and so they’re not going to get it after September. Something from September on that’s airing on ESPN will keep on ESPN. Proper now, solely the pay-per-views are on Netflix. All the pieces else seems to be heading to the WWE YouTube web page.”
That “all the pieces else” contains plenty of materials followers have spent years monitoring down. Meltzer famous that territory footage like AWA, WCW, and different legacy libraries are slowly disappearing from paid platforms.
“Yeah, very slowly rolled out, however basically, the territorial stuff goes to be largely gone. Like, they’re going to put stuff up on YouTube, however you’re by no means going to get wherever close to all of the stuff up.”
There may be nonetheless an opportunity WWE may promote components of the archive individually, however curiosity could also be restricted. At this level, we must wait and see.
“Proper now, they may nonetheless promote it as a separate factor. ESPN had curiosity in that stuff, however I don’t understand how a lot curiosity they’d have within the non-WWE stuff. The WWE library clearly has all these territory libraries, plenty of fashionable stuff, some independents from the UK they made offers with. They might launch it any means they need, however the pay-per-views have been thought-about—so far as the library goes—essentially the most worthwhile asset. So essentially the most worthwhile asset is off the desk.”
The state of affairs will get much more tangled with regards to weekly TV libraries. Dave Meltzer outlined how Uncooked, SmackDown, and NXT are all cut up throughout completely different properties.
“Netflix will most likely get all of the Raws and possibly for worldwide a number of the different stuff. They’re not going to have the ability to get NXT for now. I’m unsure what CW will personal there. SmackDown they wouldn’t have the ability to get as a result of that’s USA and that’s going to remain on Peacock. So that they’ll nonetheless preserve the SmackDown library for years. The NXT library—Peacock goes to be dropping comparatively quickly. So who is aware of the place that’s all going to go as nicely.”
For followers, the consequence is a continuing wrestle to determine which service has what present. Pay-per-views transfer to ESPN. Older content material drifts to YouTube. SmackDown stays with Peacock. NXT’s archive turns into a query mark. We’ll preserve our fingers crossed that issues don’t get extra difficult.
The WWE library nonetheless has worth. It’s simply not in a single place. Netflix will home plenty of these older reveals and pay-per-views, however solely time will inform the place WWE’s archives might be in one other 10 years.
What’s your tackle WWE’s media rights offers? Do you miss the WWE Netflix for $9.99 a month? Tell us what you suppose within the feedback part!