During WWE’s annual shareholder’s meeting back on July 16, Vince McMahon talked about WWE’s ability to improve TV ratings.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, WWE’s ratings have dropped at a rapid rate, but McMahon is feeling confident he can change that.
“We have a thirty-plus year track record of creating compelling characters and engaging a variety of audiences. And we obviously remain confident we can continue that with our collective ability. Even in the most challenging environments with no live audience. The media ecosystem obviously has changed, and we change with it.
Our engagement metrics across platforms are understandably, and obviously, however, the importance of linear programming is paramount in all of our businesses. We consistently have seen year-over-year increases in a variety of digital metrics and engagement, and positive trends have continued, even during COVID.
Conversely, TV viewership trends have been negatively impacted by the COVID, obviously, and note the lack of a live audience. We are still nonetheless the #1 television show on USA [Network] and consistently the #1 broadcast show on Fridays among key demos.
We expect a combination of valuable promotional inventory from our TV partners with the return of sports events programming, and a deep roster of charismatic talent will have a positive impact on viewership over the longterm.”
Here are some additional highlights from the call:
– They confirmed that construction on the new WWE headquarters was delayed due to the pandemic and that the WWE Performance Center in London has been shut down since March due to COVID-19 issues.
– When asked if NXT is a “minor league” for WWE’s main brands, or a third brand alongside RAW and Smackdown, Triple H said it is “both” and said he is happy with how NXT TV ratings have been.
– When asked about creating new stars, Vince McMahon said that Triple H has done a great job of creating new stars in NXT, and that those talents end up on RAW and Smackdown. He also mentioned how WWE is using social media to promote new talent. He noted that right now they don’t have a live audience, saying that the live audience is essentially the third performer in the ring.
– Vince McMahon said that it is possible that WWE will do another show in Saudi Arabia before the year ends, noting that Saudi Arabia has done a better job handling COVID-19 than the United States has.
– Triple H was asked if AEW is taking some of WWE’s market share. He said that when something brand new starts, it’s exciting and fresh, but that WWE has a very long track record of success, and that they will continue focusing on their product.
H/T to WrestleNomics
