WWE Network move to Peacock part of very busy spring for WWE

World Wrestling Entertainment is used to making headlines this time of year leading up to WrestleMania. But the company has more on its plate leading up to its showcase event on April 10 and 11.

Two major moves will happen over the next six weeks — the WWE Network’s move to Peacock on March 18, along with the search for a new home for the ThunderDome, which is where “Raw” and “Smackdown” are being held due to the coronavirus pandemic.

WWE Network was launched in February 2014 and was ahead of its time because it changed its business model from relying on pay-per-view events in favor of an OTT (streaming media) service. The network originally partnered with MLB BAMTech to build the framework, which marked the first time that MLB Advanced Media had supplied all the hardware, software and built a network for another company.

BAMTech was eventually spun off by MLB into a separate company before Disney acquired majority ownership. Over the past couple years, WWE realized that trying to maintain the infrastructure could come at the expense of programming, bringing about the relationship with Peacock, which was a streaming service started last summer by NBCUniversal.

WWE president and chief revenue officer Nick Khan said discussions about

WWE Network’s future had been happening since well before the pandemic.

“The big question internally was how much can you invest and keep pace with the technology? It would be a massive investment,” he said.

WWE Network averages 1.5 million subscribers, and will see a huge jump in its potential audience. Comcast said in its fourth-quarter financial report that Peacock had 33 million sign-ups.

“We can drop the price in half (WWE Network was $9.99 per month, while Peacock will be $4.99 per month) and add their technical support. Ultimately it became a no brainer, especially with their reach,” Khan said.

The move to Peacock also provides a financial boost for

WWE after going from 310 live events in 2019 to 42 last year due to the pandemic. WWE will see an average of $200 million a year during the five-year contract.

WWE will shut down the existing standalone WWE Network app on April 4, meaning WrestleMania will be exclusively on Peacock. Comcast said in a release on Monday that the entire WWE Network archive should be on Peacock by mid-August.

With live road shows not expected to return until at least July, WWE still has not finalized a location for ThunderDome beginning in April. They are currently using Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, but have to leave when the Tampa Bay Rays have their home opener on April 9.