Warner Bros. Discovery’s offer to retain the broadcasting rights for AEW has left company President Tony Khan disappointed, it has been said.
According to a report by Matthew Belloni of Puck News, WBD CEO David Zaslav and TNT Sports head Luis Silberwasser are eager to keep AEW’s three shows on its channels.
The exclusivity window will close in July and Khan is said to be disappointed with the offer currently on the table. The report adds,
“Khan also knows that Zaz losing the NBA would give AEW more leverage, even though the money to re-up AEW is a mere drop in the NBA bucket.”
If the exclusivity window closes without AEW and WBD coming to terms, others could swoop in for AEW media rights though only non-WWE partners could place bids.
While ratings have fluctuated, AEW has reliably performed well on Turner network programming compared to other shows in similar time slots.
Tony Khan has kept relatively quiet regarding AEW’s negotiations with WBD other than to say discussions are ongoing and that AEW enjoys a good relationship with WBD.
