During a recent interview with Solo Wrestling, ROH Director of Operations Joe Koff commented on Ring of Honor considering a Spanish-language version, and more. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On increasing reach to Spanish-speaking audiences: “We do have it in mind and we are aware about the situation. ROH is an American product that has Hispanic wrestlers. I do not want to demerit their work, because it is amazing, but then again, for the Hispanic fan that is used to seeing the products in Spanish and in a concrete wrestling way, I do not think we are at that point just yet. Of course this is something we have considered, but I am not going to make an announcement just yet. It is a Spanish version of our show (ROH TV), but we are not at that point, yet; It is something we have in our aim and we are concreting how we will be able to do it. I want to offer the Hispanic fan the product in the same form they want, not in the form in which an American thinks they should do. I do not like that, that is not my style.”
On his relationship with Cary Silkin: “It is based on respect. It is, first of all, a business relationship, but with a lot of respect and honor. Releasing ROH was a tough decision for Cary. I’m convinced that he was worried about who was going to get the company, because it was his baby after all. He wanted to make sure his baby was in good hands, so I had to earn his trust. Cary and I have a great relationship. It is authentic and I cannot imagine a scenario without it involved. He is the image and representation of ROH and now we are being able to do things that he could not. We have the same intentions and commitment to the brand ”.
On transitioning to TV and PPV after he came on board: “That was one of the big points in my favor, because we are in the television business and we know how to do it. We have relationships with television companies, our own stations and our own distribution. We not only produce content, but we distribute it through our channels, and that is a great differential factor, because without distribution no one can see you. With that in mind, it wasn’t very difficult. When we bought the company, the biggest source of income was DVDs and merchandising, but it was a technology issue. At that time it was the format that was popular, but over the years VOD (video on demand) was gaining ground on DVD and we had to point in other directions. This is where Honor Club came from , which is not just an on-demand platform, but a connection point with fans. Even though we bought the company in 2010, we have the rights to everything produced since 2002. If you stop to think about the big names on the scene today, there’s a good chance they struggled at some point in their ROH careers and had some of the your best matches here. That is something that fills me with pride ”.
