WWE Projected to Earn $20 Million in Revenue from Corporate Sponsors
This number has nearly tripled in the past five years, when in 2008 they earned $7.4 million. This is due to promising advertisers that they will no longer have any risque television shows and their push for TV-PG content.
Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
WWE to Refocus on the Tag Team Division?
According to Dave Meltzer, HHH has laid out a plan to build up the division which includes getting teams ready in NXT before reaching the main roster and to take underutilized and talented singles wrestlers on the main roster and pairing them up to see if they can get over as a duo.
Credit Dave Melzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
WWE Disappointed that Brie Bella is not Getting over as a Babyface?
Company officials were apparently puzzled on RAW this past Monday when Brie was not getting much sympathy from the crowd when getting destroyed by Tamina Snuka.
Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
TNA Plans for Ethan Carter
Carter, who wrestled as Derrick Bateman in the WWE, will be called Ethan Carter III, or EC3 for short in a takeoff of Washington Redskins Quarterback Robert Griffin III.
Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
This number has nearly tripled in the past five years, when in 2008 they earned $7.4 million. This is due to promising advertisers that they will no longer have any risque television shows and their push for TV-PG content.
Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
WWE to Refocus on the Tag Team Division?
According to Dave Meltzer, HHH has laid out a plan to build up the division which includes getting teams ready in NXT before reaching the main roster and to take underutilized and talented singles wrestlers on the main roster and pairing them up to see if they can get over as a duo.
Credit Dave Melzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
WWE Disappointed that Brie Bella is not Getting over as a Babyface?
Company officials were apparently puzzled on RAW this past Monday when Brie was not getting much sympathy from the crowd when getting destroyed by Tamina Snuka.
Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
TNA Plans for Ethan Carter
Carter, who wrestled as Derrick Bateman in the WWE, will be called Ethan Carter III, or EC3 for short in a takeoff of Washington Redskins Quarterback Robert Griffin III.
Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter
Carter, who wrestled as Derrick Bateman in the WWE, will be called Ethan Carter III, or EC3 for short in a takeoff of Washington Redskins Quarterback Robert Griffin III.
ReplyDeleteFuck every last thing about that.
Also, HHH rebuilding the tag division is becoming the new "Rumor has it this is the year Savage/Warrior/Owen goes in the Hall" story. Of course, this is probably the only time I've ever actually believed it. They not only have teams, they have teams with NAMES. And not just names, but names that don't have "Team" in them.
I count that as progress. Oh, and I guess the crazy, amazing Shield matches too. Whatever.
Did you know
ReplyDeleteDid you know that Tamina Snuka is disgusted of WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Superfly Snuka?
ReplyDeleteThe corporate sponsorship money is a direct result of trying to replace the lost revenue from ppv stealing. Remember that next time you get annoyed by Michael Cole saying something is trending or Lawler spends 3 minutes comparing the last match to the delicious subway sangwich he's enjoying.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Brie isn't a good face because she isn't very sympathetic, whereas AJ is very likeable?
ReplyDeleteAnd that HHH seems a smart guy.
They also have not bothered to make Brie appear likable on RAW or Smackdown.
ReplyDeleteMaybe. Although, I just read a study which said that stealing of that nature drops dramatically if there's a viable alternative. I have tried to order WWE Pay per views on my computer. Through the WWE website and it consistently crashes, freezes, forces me to reload.
ReplyDeleteSecond. Raw is free TV and the ratings are way down from the late nineties. One would assume a correlation exists.
Replacing the lost revenue is fine, but I don't think it's PPV stealing.
Wyatt family, Shield, Rhodes Brothers, Usos. They're at least trying something with Los Matadores.
ReplyDeleteThat is part of it but the WWE has wanted to become known for more than just wrestling for a while. Plus, they want to make the WWE a respected brand. It is easier to earn money from corporate advertisers than PPV revenue too.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion - Just as many PPV's, if not more, were stolen with black cable boxes in the 90's and early 2000's. I knew many people who had them. If I mention streaming no one has any idea what I'm talking about. Old argument and I will agree to disagree. Only the hardest of the hardcore fans stream wrestling PPV's, and many of them will pay for the HD PPV for a worthwhile card.
ReplyDeleteThere's a viable alternative to free? I think that offering it for less at the website just means people will pay less and then have it sent from their computer to the tv. Which would lower the ppv revenue even further.
ReplyDeleteA correlation between what and what?
Yeah, we've been over this. Its ridiculous to think that as many people had black boxes as have access to streaming. Hell, the whole ppv thread here is almost exclusively people streaming the show.
ReplyDelete1. Good for them. For that kind of profit, I would stay PG too.
ReplyDelete2. We've heard this before, but I hope it's true this time. Especially the NXT part. I'd love to see the return to true tag teams (matching attire, tandem moves, actually staying together instead of the Kane + whoever type wacky duos)
3. AJ is the closest thing to an entertaining Diva they have had since Trish, Lita, and Stacy. They can't be all that surprised that a diva isn't getting over, can they?
4. Never heard of him
No one was comparing people who have access to streaming to people who had black boxes. He said people who actually used an illicit stream to watch a show for free. I wouldn't be surprised if the ratio was at least close.
ReplyDelete"Just as many PPV's, if not more, were stolen with black cable boxes in the 90's and early 2000's"
ReplyDeleteThat is absolutely ridiculous. That's like saying just as much music is being illegally copied and distributed now as in the 80s and 90s when you could use a tape recorder to copy from one cassette to another.
Well, HHH may be interested in making more tag teams, but unless direction comes from Vince to have 'creative' push them it's spitting in the wind.
ReplyDelete"Company officials were apparently puzzled on RAW this past Monday when Brie was not getting much sympathy from the crowd"
That's hilarious. I'm puzzled that company officials ever thought there actually was anything sympathetic about the Bellas.
A complete sangwich? You got fleeced.
ReplyDeleteWWE would be silly to leave sponsorship money on the table, lost PPV revenue or not. I think it's just good business to sell more advertising.
Wow, I sure am thirsty right now. Time for a can of delicious Barq's Root Beer. Ahhh... now THAT'S root beer!
The Bellas are possible the most unlikable faces since The Miz.
ReplyDeletePiracy of music is on the wane though. You don't need to pirate music anymore because you can get it all with Spotify, or Vevo, or any number of other options.
ReplyDeleteTechnology evolved and the smart companies evolved along with it.
I will again point you to the fact that every month there is a ppv thread at this blog with over a thousand comments. And very few if any of those posters purchase the ppv. There are plenty of people that still watch the ppvs. There are just far fewer people paying for them.
ReplyDeleteAnd artists are getting paid next to nothing from those sites. But its better than having people steal the product and getting nothing out of it. Which proves my point even more. Now instead of paying of the product, you have to listen to advertising. So don't complain about the ads.
ReplyDeleteA thousand comments but not a thousand people. I don't steal the things. It'd be interesting to do a survey though. Neither of us has any raw data or real numbers so it's foolish to argue about it.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. I knew many people who had black boxes, and even had one of my own in the mid 90s. Additionally, when I couldn't watch at my house or at a friend's I would watch PPVs through the scrambled feed.
ReplyDeleteHardcore wrestling fans tend to be nerdy, and nerds are the people who know where to find illegal streams. I think too many people are making assumptions that people are aware illegal streams are even available. Additionally, many people are afraid of being caught watching an illegal stream.
I never once complained about the ads. I like advertising. I pay for Hulu and happily watch the ads. I like that hulu tailors them to me. Mostly I get ads about upcoming video games. Which I then buy. The system works!
ReplyDeleteAnd artists are getting a better stake in their own career now than they were for a long time. You no longer explicitly need a label/middleman to take a cut. Look at Girl Talk.
You do realize what my original premise was, right?
ReplyDeleteHow many people do you think read this site and don't comment? It's probably more than you think. The point is that the number of comments is representative of a higher number. There are almost as many comments on a ppv as there are on a raw.
ReplyDeleteComparing watching a stream to watching scramblevision is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteAnd who do you know that would be more afraid of being caught watching an illegal stream than the would be using a black box?
DIDN'T HHH TRIED DOING THIS WITH THE TAG DIVISION EXACTLY A YEAR AGO?
ReplyDeleteFace or heel the Bellas are boring.
ReplyDeleteAdmittedly, it's a pretty small sample size here at the Blog 'O' Doom.
ReplyDeletePlus, we're all rasslin' Universe Members who know where to find such things.
Your premise is akin to saying there's a lot of criminals in jail..
That corporate sponsorship is a result of people stealing PPVs?
ReplyDeleteI think that corporate sponsorship is a result of wanting as much revenue as possible. Because capitalism.
My problem with your statement was that they were forced to do this because of lost revenue from people stealing ppvs. A subject on which we have no data and have not researched. I pointed out that maybe PPV revenues were down for a reason other than streaming.
The Real Americans. PrimeTime Players. Tons of Funk.
ReplyDeleteThere's loads of tag teams in WWE right now. I love tag matches
Exactly. A few years back, when my girlfriend and I were living with her brother, I was telling him that I was planning on watching a PPV online through a feed, and he got really nervous about that. The cable/internet and everything was in his name, and I had to spend about 20 minutes convincing him he wouldn't get in trouble.
ReplyDeleteHe's a pretty nerdy dude, too, and usually pretty tech savvy. But the idea of using a stream to watch a PPV without paying for it made him nervous.
Not everyone out there is like us.
Yeah, but we don't have any data. Your gut can't give you a definitive answer.
ReplyDeleteYeah, and I'd definitely say there's been lots of progress in the tag team division since last year. Hell No had a long reign and were super over, then they lost it to another very over team in The SHield during a pretty heated feud that produced lots of awesome TV matches. And then last week SHield lost to another really over team in a great match that had actual storyline behind it.
ReplyDeleteIn the meanwhile there's been a legit effort to create teams with names and actual TEAM GIMMICKS, such as The Usos, Rhodes Scholars, 3MB, Tons of Funk, Prime Time Players, Real Americans, and now Los Matadores. Not everything has worked, but hell even in the "golden era of WWF tag wrestling" a percentage of the division was shit (Bushwhackers, Rhythym & Blues, Rougeaus) too. Either way, I'd definitely say the last 12 months is the most focused the WWE tag division has been in a loooong time.
We need a thread "Hey, Lurkers! Come out and play!" so we can see new faces. Fuj would be delighted with all the noobs showing up.
ReplyDeleteThe Tag Division bit is hilarious since that's a Vince Russo-specialty. Not saying it's a bad idea, it's just such an obvious idea.
ReplyDeleteAnd I don't know why they would be puzzled about Brie Bella. Why should she be over?
and they have no asses.
ReplyDeletei cant get behind them as faces with no asses.
You wanna have Brie Bella get over? Have her become FRIENDS with AJ Lee on-screen, not feud with her. WWE just has to deal with the fact that wrestling fans like AJ—because she's their best in-ring female wrestler, she's a nerd, she loves wrestling, and she seems like a nice person— and run with her as a face. Then have Brie Bella make a save on AJ during a beatdown, turn them into buddies, and Brie might have a chance of not being hated.
ReplyDeleteOh, and she should also stop doing the entrance spin and the "Loser" sign and all the other general cunty Bellas mannerisms. That might help.
Support this with evidence please.
ReplyDeleteYou want evidence? Miz vs Undertaker at Mania, THERE'S your evidence!
ReplyDeleteBrie downvoted this but Nikki can't remember her Disqus login.
ReplyDelete...what?
ReplyDeleteYou mean "Hot woman with rich boyfriend who gets to travel an be on TV for a career" ISN'T something that makes people sympathize.
ReplyDeleteWatching on blackbox: non-trackable.
ReplyDeleteWatching via the internet: trackable via IP address.
It is a simple concept.
Stupid reference to how Dougie used to constantly predict that it was going to be Miz, not Punk, vs Taker at Mania 29.
ReplyDeleteThere is as much evidence that that was going to happen as what Meltzer says that people act like is gospel.
ReplyDeleteYou think blackboxes were non-trackable? lulz
ReplyDeleteI'm puzzled that they're puzzled nobody cares about Brie Bella.
ReplyDeleteNo that's true, Miz having a 50/50 feud with Kofi and jobbing to Cesaro were definitely signs he was being groomed for a Taker match at Mania.
ReplyDeleteVince Russo would pair up guys who hate each other and have the entire division comprised with guys who don't want to be teaming up and consider winning the titles an inconvenience because it keeps them together.
ReplyDeleteOh, please please PLEASE let them be serious about pushing the tag team division. There are at least 10 guys on the main roster who could be paired up to give them something to do, to say nothing of the NXT guys. If you can build up the division to have at least 10-12 reasonably credible tag teams, the shows would get a LOT better.
ReplyDeleteAnd then they should make out. That would get her over as a face, pretty sure.
ReplyDeleteThat's the truth isn't it. Can't imagine someone who comes across as so unlikeable on TV isn't getting over as a face.
ReplyDeleteBring back Evan Bourne, team him back with Kofi, and give Air Boom one more big push. The fans were way into them until Bourne fucked it all up with the suspension.
ReplyDeleteThen re-team Tyson Kidd and Gabriel, turn them heel, give them Vicky as a manager and let them be "The Pretty Boys" or "The Lightning Express" or whatever, and feud them with Air Boom. That shit could definitely get over.
In politics there is always talk about living in a bubble. It shouldn't be a surprise that Vince/HHH/Steph live in their own bubble. I'm guessing there isn't a lot of alternative voices that stand up to them.
ReplyDeleteHLA returns!
ReplyDeleteIf nothing else it could save jobs - there's been a lot of guys who either couldn't cut it as singles or just didn't get the chance and after hanging around doing nothing for a while they get fired and replaced with other guys who end up doing nothing. At least this gives them a chance - imagine if Bret Hart or Shawn Michaels, even Edge or Jeff Hardy, were seen as tag team wrestlers only and they didn't care about the division. I'm not saying the next breakout star is a Justin Gabriel but you never know.
ReplyDeleteWhat did you just say about the Rougeaus?
ReplyDeleteHAHAHAHA, I mean they were obviously better workers than what we got to see on TV, but they were that era's 3MB in terms of being jobbers. I mean, even the Orient Express got a PPV win at some point.
ReplyDeleteThe cable companies could send out signals to black boxes that would make them useless. During Boxing and Wrestling PPV's, they would frequently send out those signals.
ReplyDeleteWell...The blackboxes were untrackable for a long while. What the cable company would have to do is notice that a cable drop was going to a house which had never paid for cable service. Then enter the home and see the black box. Neither of which was feasible.
ReplyDeleteWith 10 bucks of tools from Radio shack and some know how, it was pretty easy to do. (Not that I did it. I worked for a cable company, so I knew the tricks.)
I love that you don't get it.
ReplyDeleteI am amazed this is even a debate. It's so much easier to pirate WWE through the net than it is through a black box it's laughable, and easier to find. Does anyone really think that just as many people used BBSes as they do torrents??
ReplyDeleteI love that you say "I love that you don't get it" like that means anything.
ReplyDeleteI didn't until now, but yes if you're saying it then my opinion has changed to whatever the opposite is. So yes black boxes were un-trackable.
ReplyDeletei think the flip is a billy idol song, 'ass without a face'
ReplyDeleteand why we cant have nice things
ReplyDeletedo i care?
ReplyDeleteI never experienced that (not saying it didn't happen though). I still do not believe that they could track it though, at least not in the way internet activity can be tracked. But maybe I'm wrong.
ReplyDeleteSo, she's a heel forever. She's the star of a TV show that makes her look like a terrible person (although a slightly less terrible person than her twin sister) and they can't figure out why she doesn't get sympathy after one match on TV? Fans like it when bad people get beat up....there, problem solved.
ReplyDeleteMr. Tony?
ReplyDeleteFew things:
ReplyDelete1. lulz? My 14 year old uses that. Just saying.
2. I don't know why I'm giving into your trolling, but it is a slow day at work.
3. I worked in the cable industry from 99-2003. During my time not only did I not hear that black boxes could be tracked, but i was told to watch in people's residences for them and to report people who had them. My assumption (which could be wrong) was that there was no other way of tracking people who had them. Analog cable boxes were archaic and the technology barely changed from their introduction until their replacement with digital boxes. I find it hard to believe that they, or the black boxes connected to them, could be tracked.
Maybe Randy can RKO Brie too, while Daniel Bryan plays the role of Miz's dad and stands in an imaginary force field 6 inches away, unable to stop it.
ReplyDeleteI had quite the mix tape collection as well. And when Napster came out I tripled the size of it in one afternoon.
ReplyDeleteEven if you ignore Total Divas, they have done nothing to make the Bellas sympathetic. They turned face because AJ cut a promo on them. They haven't actually done anything on their own to make them faces.
ReplyDeleteThat would totally work! Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be in my bunk.
ReplyDeleteFrom the Divas show, it seems Brie is a hipster. She's got a hipster boyfriend with an alternative job and big beard, they're both vegan/wholefood types. They played up AJ's nerd credentials. Why not play up Brie's hipster credentials.
What happened to Kaitlyn? I don't remember her being on TV for at least a month.
ReplyDeleteCorrect me if I'm wrong, but isn't it only illegal to share the PPV stream for others to watch? Not actually illegal to watch it yourself?
ReplyDeleteBecause anything you've ever said means something?
ReplyDeleteTrue. The illegality is in the upload.
ReplyDeleteLast week's RAW featured three separate tag team matches and also set up an actual tag feud (Matadores/Americans) that didn't involve the belts. Good start.
ReplyDeleteHow? It took 30 minutes to download a song.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the bold citrus taste of SURGE!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be surprised if the number of people streaming worldwide is almost equal to the # of paying customers. However I bet 99% of the streamers wouldn't have paid for the show anyway so I doubt they would turn too much more of a profit if they could stop it. Definitely no where what they made off the corporate sponsorships
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't call Brie a hipster. I live in Philly, I've lived in New York; I probably am a hipster, but I definitely know hipsters. Brie is not one. She seems relatively normal, if maybe a yuppie offshoot of a hipster. I don't see her riding a fixie or composting (even though DBry does) or probably even giving a shit about who Morrissey is, the way I see people obsessing over that trivial stuff here. She just happens to be in close proximity to a massive hipster (DBry) so it's rubbed off on her.
ReplyDeleteThere is a significant portion of the streaming audience that would absolutely pay if they couldn't get it for free. There is a significant portion of the raw audience that hates the product yet continues to watch. Some people are just crazy.
ReplyDeleteBoth are trackable.
ReplyDeleteYou had to say the Meltzer word, didn't you.
ReplyDeleteBecause again, what you said above is simply not true, and has been debunked and dissected numerous times. I'm up for another go around though.
Dougie admitted at NPP that he was simply trolling people with that prediction.
ReplyDeleteNo he didn't.
ReplyDeleteTell your uncle I said hey.
ReplyDeleteBut why not tap into what little of it she has is my question. Completely rip off Zooey Deschanel and put it in the ring.
ReplyDelete"probably even giving a shit about who Morrissey is"
ReplyDeleteI can't blame her. Morrissey is a twat.
Will do.
ReplyDeleteWhat has Meltzer said that you thought was inaccurate or not true? As noted before, just because he says WWE is planning something doesn't mean it's a guarantee it's going to happen.
He has sources up and down the company and has earned his reputation, having been recognized outside of wrestling circles. And this is from soneone who often disagrees with his opinion
Yes you did. Did you honestly think they were doing Taker-Miz at Mania?
ReplyDeletei'm sure scott will get a bunch of e-mails about this, but there is a leaked memo that lists terms that wwe commentators should not use
ReplyDeletehttp://www.411mania.com/wrestling/news/300962/Leaked-WWE-Memo-Reveals-Terms-That-Kevin-Dunn,-Vince-and-Stephanie-McMahon-Do-Not-Want-Commentators-Using-on-WWE-TV.htm
A talented, endlessly entertaining twat.
ReplyDeleteZooey's appeal is similar to AJ's. Guys swoon over her because she seems approachable and down to earth in a way other actresses don't. Brie doesn't have that appeal because she comes across as a model (i.e. someone completely out of your, my, or most other guys' leagues).
ReplyDelete