It looks as if the days of WWE Superstars using Twitch, Cameo, YouTube, and other third parties to earn some extra revenue are coming to an end. This comes during the COVID-19 pandemic, where many Superstars are using these platforms to earn some extra cash while WWE isn’t running live events. That obviously cuts out some of their bonuses and merchandise earnings.
According to a report from Wrestlinginc.com, Vince McMahon sent a letter to WWE talents on Thursday, telling them that they have 30 days to stop engaging with third parties. If they don’t comply, they will face fines, suspensions and even termination at WWE’s discretion.
With that being said, there is no word on what “third parties” means as of this writing. As many of you know, numerous WWE Superstars run their own Twitch, Cameo, and YouTube.com accounts. Some of those names include Roman Reigns, AJ Styles, Ric Flair, Asuka, Peyton Royce, Billie Kay, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Charlotte Flair, Xavier Woods, Liv Morgan, and many others.
The company held a conference call with talent on Sunday, discussing the “reinvention of the product”. During that meeting, it came up that WWE owns the real names of talent in addition to their character names. As many of you know by now, many of the Superstars on YouTube.com and other platforms have been using their real names. Of course, WWE Superstars are independent contractors so there could be some legal issues here.
McMahon’s letter said, “Some of you are engaged with outside third parties using your name and likeness in ways that are detrimental to our company. It is imperative that these activities be terminated within the next 30 days (by Friday October 2). Continued violations will result in fines, suspension, or termination at WWE’s discretion.”
McMahon also claimed in the letter that the actions are “necessary” as part of WWE’s rebuilding process as they “enter the next phase of growth at WWE.”
