Partial Source:
The Wrestling Observer
UPDATE: WWE will reportedly lose more money this
year than any wrestling promotion has ever lost in a calendar year, except for
WCW in 2000. They will lose around $46-52 million this year. WCW lost $62
million in 2000. WWE projected to lose about $23-26 million in the first six
months. After the new TV deal and the launch of the WWE Network (they got way
less than they expected for both), they expected to break even. They didn’t even
come close as we’ve been reporting. However, even with the company losing all of
this money, there is no chance they’re going to go out of
business.
We reported
several months ago that the initial WWE Network numbers were lower than WWE
anticipated despite them spinning them in press releases for obvious reasons.
The internal hope was for around 1 million subscribers after the initial launch
and WrestleMania. They set an “easy” goal of 1 million subscribers “by the end
of the year” as a way to impress their investors. They wanted to come out the
day after WrestleMania and announce that they were already close to their goal.
The fear is that subscribers are trickling in now that most of their fans have
ordered for the initial launch and WestleMania. If they didn’t order the Network
for WrestleMania, they are not likely to order for “B” pay-per-views such as
Payback, Money in the Bank, etc. Also, a lot of people will likely wind up
leaving once their six month subscription is up this fall.
ORIGINAL: After the news of WWE’s financial
problems and their plans to make the WWE Network profitable, Chief Strategy
& Financial Officer George Barrios said that there may be advertisements on
the Network soon. Ads could start appearing as soon as the first quarter of
2015.
There has also
been talk of increasing the monthly subscription cost to increase
revenue.
