UPDATE: As we reported earlier here on eWn, MLW filed an anti-trust lawsuit against WWE on Tuesday. According to a report from Pwinsider, the 19-page lawsuit alleges intentional interference with contract relations, intentional interference with prospective economic relations, and a violation of the Sherman Antitrust act.
According to the lawsuit, WWE has maintained control of 85% of pro wrestling since buying WCW in 2001. MLW claims the company is “maintaining its dominance through unfair and anticompetitive business practices, including poaching talent, misappropriating confidential information, interfering with competitors’ contracts and cutting off competitors’ access to their viewing audiences.”
The lawsuit also says WWE’s decline in popularity over the last five years is “due to, among other things, inferior content” and says WWE has taken aim at MLW with “unlawful predatory conduct, including airing without authority MLW wrestling footage, inducing MLW wrestlers under exclusive contracts with MLW to terminate those contracts, and encouraging MLW wrestlers to breach their contracts with MLW by disclosing MLW’s confidential and proprietary business information.”
MLW then cites two major examples of WWE unlawfully interfering with their business, saying they are the sole reason for the death of their “lucrative agreement” with Tubi, which is the free ad-supported streaming service that is owned by FOX, which of course airs WWE SmackDown. MLW says they signed a deal with Tubi in mid-2021 but WWE eventually got involved and put a stop to it. Many of you may remember that MLW had teased a major streaming announcement at that time, but it never wound up taking place. MLW claims the deal “would have had a profound impact on MLW’s business by giving it exposure to Fox’s broad television and NFL football audience, further positioning MLW for future media deals.”
The suit states that when WWE found out they then “contacted a Tubi executive located in Tubi’s headquarters in San Francisco and threatened that if Tubi did not terminate the MLW contract, WWE would cease doing business with Fox and would pull important WWE programs from Fox platforms.” The suit alleges this resulted in the termination of MLW’s contract, with this decision being made “just days before MLW content was to begin airing on Tubi.” The suit has alleged that the termination of this contract would seriously damage MLW’s finances, with it stating that the decision resulted “in substantial losses to MLW and harm to consumers, including in California.” MLW’s suit stated that it was the loss of this deal that led to MLW live event cancellations, with it leading to a 40% drop in MLW ticket sales within weeks of the incident occurring. This loss of contract is also alleged to have caused a “substantial decline” in the company’s overall value. This is also allegedly not the only way WWE ended MLW’s negotiations with a group – with the suit alleging WWE caused the end of their negotiations with VICE TV in 2021. This came after MLW and Vice TV reached an agreement in May of last year. This was to have VICE TV air MLW archival footage as a starting point, with “negotiations to expand the agreement to include the broadcasting of new licensed programs.” The first of these features was the October 2021 MLW Fightland special.
The lawsuit states:
“When WWE found out about the MLW/VICE agreement, its Senior Vice President, Susan Levison, called a VICE executive to tell him that WWE’s owner, Vince McMahon — notorious for his aggressive business tactics — was “pissed” that VICE was airing MLW content and wanted VICE to stop doing so. The VICE executive told Levison that “I think that this is illegal what you’re doing” and that it was probably an antitrust violation, to which Levison responded that she could not control Vince McMahon. WWE had considerable leverage over VICE because professional wrestling was an important part of VICE’s programming and wrestling viewers were an important part of VICE’s audience. VICE therefore needed WWE, as the overwhelmingly dominant wrestling company, to ensure the success of VICE’s wrestling-related programs, which included a series, Dark Side of the Ring, often focused on WWE storylines based on input from WWE. WWE’s interference resulted in VICE withdrawing from negotiations over airing new MLW content and in VICE airing only a single MLW program.”
WWE also reportedly attempted to poach MLW talent and aired footage of one of their fighters without authorization or consent in 2020. The company claims WWE tried to induce MLW wrestlers to breach contracts and reveal “confidential and proprietary information” regarding MLW’s business. The lawsuit says WWE’s “pattern of predatory and exclusionary conduct has hampered competition in the U.S. wrestling market by depriving MLW and other competitors of distribution channels, and its conduct has harmed consumers by depriving them of content and keeping prices high.”
The suit also claims that due to WWE’s “wanton misconduct, MLW has suffered and will suffer monetary damages and irreparable harm, resulting from, among other things, continued loss of brand recognition and valuable talent, posing a serious risk that its business will be destroyed.”
MLW wants a jury trial and is asking for the following:
*A judgment in favor of MLW and against WWE.
*An award of actual damages and all damages that were a natural result of WWE’s tortious conduct, in an amount to be calculated at trial, inclusive of any pre-judgment or post-judgment interest accrued under California Civil Code.
*An award of exemplary damages for WWE’s oppressive and malicious tortious conduct, pursuant to California Civil Code.
*A declaration that WWE’s unlawful and predatory interference with MLW’s access to the media markets and wrestling talent was and is decreed a violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act.
*Injunctive relief to prevent WWE from engaging in anti-competitive and unfair business practices towards MLW pursuant to California Business and Professions Code.
*Injunctive relief to prevent WWE from engaging in anti-competitive and unfair business practices towards MLW pursuant to Sections 4 and 16 of the Clayton Antitrust Act, 15.
*An award of treble the amount of MLW’s damages resulting from its antitrust injuries to be proven at trial in accordance with Section 4 of the Clayton Antitrust Act.
*An award of MLW’s costs and expenses of litigation, including attorneys’ fees and expert witness fees, in accordance with Section 4 of the Clayton Antitrust Act,
*Interest.
*Such other relief as the Court deems just and proper.
WWE has also issued the following statement to Pwinsider:
“WWE believes these claims have no merit and intends to vigorously defend itself against them.”
NOTE: Ryan Clark & Jozef Kostecki contributed to this article.
ORIGINAL: Major League Wrestling (MLW) recently filed a lawsuit against WWE, alleging that WWE has been interfering with their contracts and business prospects.
MLW claims WWE attempted to “[disrupt] every level of MLW’s business, including a major streaming deal for MLW which would have been transformative for the company.” The lawsuit also alleges that in 2021, a then-WWE executive tried to pressure VICE TV into not working with MLW because Vince McMahon was “pissed” about it.
MLW sent out the following statement regarding the lawsuit.
MLW Files Anti-Trust Lawsuit Against WWE
Professional wrestling company Major League Wrestling (MLW) (MLW Media LLC), filed a lawsuit today against World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE). The federal court antitrust lawsuit is based on WWE’s ongoing attempts to undermine competition in and monopolize the professional wrestling market by interfering with MLW’s contracts and business prospects.
As described in the complaint, WWE pressured third parties to abandon contracts and prospective relationships with MLW. WWE’s misconduct included disrupting every level of MLW’s business, including a major streaming deal for MLW which would have been transformative for the company.
MLW also allege in the complaint that in early 2021, after MLW announced that it was in talks with VICE TV to air MLW programs on VICE TV, a then-WWE executive warned VICE TV that WWE owner Vince McMahon was “pissed” that VICE TV was airing MLW programs, and that VICE TV should stop working with MLW, the VICE TV executive responded that WWE’s conduct was illegal and an antitrust violation, with the WWE executive responding that she could not control McMahon.
“WWE has been wrongfully depriving its competitors of critical opportunities for many years, but its latest conduct has been even more unconscionable,” said MLW CEO Court Bauer. “I think we speak for the rest of the professional wrestling world when we say that this anti-competitive behavior has to stop.” WWE’s ongoing misconduct has hurt fans of professional wrestling and competition in the professional wrestling industry. Through this lawsuit, MLW seeks to recover its losses due to WWE’s interference and to enjoin WWE from future interference. The case is captioned MLW Media LLC v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. MLW is represented by Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP.
