WWE revenues by business segment for Q2 2016

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07/28/2016

When comparing the Q2 2016 results by business segments to Q2 2015, WWE had a pretty good month with live event revenues taking the cake this time around thanks to the massive WrestleMania 32 in Dallas. WrestleMania did not fall in Q2 last year and was part of the Q1 results.

Out of the nine different money-making divisions, seven performed better when compared to the prior year quarter, one was flat, and one did less.

Those who fared better are: WWE Network including traditional PPV revenue registered $51.8 million, up from $40.1 million; Television revenues increased 8% to $56.1 million; Live event revenues increased 97% to a record of $51.9 million thanks to WrestleMania, up from $26.4 million; Digital Media was up to $6.5 million from $3.8 million; Venue merchandise was $8.7 million versus $4.7 million; WWE Shop was $7.5 million compared to $5.8 million from last year; and WWE Studios was up to $3.2 million compared to $2.1 million.

Home Entertainment stayed the same with $3.1 million as the prior year quarter while Licensing was down to $9 million from $11.3 million due to lower video game sales.

WWE Network subscribers stand at 1.56 million

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/28/2016

As of June 30, 2016, the WWE Network has a total of 1,560,000 subscribers which is up from the 1,227,000 subscribers the service had the prior year quarter.

Out of that 1.56 million subs, there are 1,511,000 paying subscribers, with 1,130,000 subscribers in the United States and 381,000 International subscribers. The paying subscribers is an increase from the 1.15 million from the prior year quarter.

In the last quarter there were a total of 1.47 million subscribers while the day after WrestleMania, that number shot up to 1.82 million subscribers which means around 260,000 subscribers discontinued the service between WrestleMania and June 30.

During WrestleMania Week, WWE Network featured 19 hours of prime-time, premier programming and subscribers watched nearly 22 million hours of content, averaging 12 hours per subscriber.

WWE reports Q2 2016 financial results

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/28/2016

WWE announced its Q2 2016 financial results today, with the company reporting a Net income of $0.8 million, or $0.01 per share, as compared to Net income of $5.1 million, or $0.07 per share, in the prior year quarter. Revenue increased 32% to a record $199.0 million as WWE’s Live Event and Network segments achieved their highest quarterly revenue in company history

“I continue to be pleased with the execution of our strategy to optimize the long-term value of our content,” stated Vince McMahon, WWE Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Progress on this objective is evidenced by the continued year-over-year growth of WWE Network, the transition of SmackDown to a live format every week and the completion of our first exclusive content agreement in China.”

George Barrios, WWE Chief Strategy & Financial Officer, added “We achieved a 25% increase in average paid subscribers to WWE Network and generated earnings that were in line with our guidance. Over the past 12 months we delivered record revenue of $703 million. Additionally, for the first half of 2016, we delivered revenue growth of 13% from the prior year period and our digital video views increased by more than 100% to nearly 8 billion and our social media engagements increased 39% to 570 million.”

The full press release can be read at http://corporate.wwe.com/news/company-news/2016/28-07-2016.

Smackdown rating for 07/26/2016

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/27/2016

Yesterday’s Smackdown, the first live show after the WWE Draft, pulled in a total of 2,743,000 viewers and while it was down 427,000 viewers from the Draft episode, it’s way, way up from its usual number. Smackdown has not pulled in 2.7 million viewers since January 28. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)

Mark Hunt rips on Brock Lesnar and the UFC

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Colin Vassallo

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07/27/2016

Speaking to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour show, Brock Lesnar’s UFC 200 opponent Mark Hunt ripped Lesnar and the UFC apart for what happened the lack of action that UFC has taken against Lesnar.

Hunt, who lost by a unanimous decision, threatened to quit the UFC unless the company gave him half the $2.5 million purse Lesnar got for the show. He then changed his mind and said he wanted the full $2.5 million as cheaters don’t deserve anything.

“Before the fight I was assuming he was cheating,” Hunt said. “Look at him. There’s no way that guy makes 265 pounds. That guy is a gimp, he’s sticking needles in his ass like the rest of these cheaters,” he told Helwani.

Hunt then the UFC a new one because according to him, they don’t care about the fighters and all they care is about the money. “We’ll let this f*cking white piece of sh*t f*cking stick needles in his ass and say, ‘oh, he’s going to take us all the way to the f*cking bank.’ Let’s give him f*cking millions of dollars and not worry about this motherf*cker. You know what? F*ck that and f*ck your sh*t company. Look at that for a contract. You can sue me on that, motherf*ckers,” an outraged Hunt added.

The UFC heavyweight from New Zealand then suggested that UFC fighters must get together and form a union and let the union tackle these issues.

When talking if he wants to have a rematch with Lesnar, Hunt said no. “I wouldn’t want to waste my time with that. He’s rubbish. And they say ‘he beat you up.’ If he didn’t stick a needle in his ass, then maybe it would be different.”

The full interview and a recap can be read at MMAFighting.com.

Dolph Ziggler to face Dean Ambrose at SummerSlam for the WWE title

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/27/2016

Dean Ambrose found out his opponent for SummerSlam at last night’s Smackdown, an opponent which was determined in a 6-pack challenge featuring John Cena, Bray Wyatt, Dolph Ziggler, Baron Corbin, AJ Styles, and Apollo Crews.

The first five mentioned were all picked by Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan and the last one, Apollo Crews, had to win a battle royal to snatch the last spot in the match. Perhaps coming as a surprise to many, it was Dolph Ziggler who ended up victorious in the number one contender match and will now have a shot at the WWE championship at SummerSlam.

This is the second title match announced for SummerSlam with the Raw brand already announcing Seth Rollins vs Finn Balor to win the new WWE Universal championship.

Brock Lesnar exempt from WWE Wellness Program drug testing

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/27/2016

TMZ.COM is reporting that Brock Lesnar will not get any kind of punishment from WWE for failing two drug tests by USADA simply because he’s not subject to the Wellness Program testing.

A WWE spokesman told TMZ that only full-time WWE Superstars are subject to the policy. “WWE’s talent wellness program does not apply to part-time performers such as Brock Lesnar,” the spokesperson said.

The performance enhancement drug that Lesnar was popped for in the UFC is prohibited as well under the WWE Wellness Program so if a full-time wrestler got caught with it, he would be suspended.

Lesnar failed two USADA-administered drug tests, an out-of-competition test and an in-competition test performed on the day of the UFC 200 fight. Lesnar won that fight against Mark Hunt by a unanimous decision.

Familiar faces returning on Smackdown

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/27/2016

A couple of familiar faces are returning to Smackdown and in fact, one of them already did last night on the show.

Former ECW champion Rhyno gored the free agent Heath Slater for his first main roster appearance since December 2015. The 40-year-old was one of the main guys in ECW until it folded in 2001 and then moved to the WWE where he stayed there till 2005. In 2015 he had a run in NXT where he appeared on several episodes of the show however was last seen in October. Earlier this month he made a surprise appearance and last week lost to Samoa Joe. During his time away from WWE he also had a run in TNA.

The other Superstar who was announced as returning is Shelton Benjamin, considered by many one of the best wrestlers in the world. Benjamin worked for WWE between 2000 and 2010 and was part of a tag team with Charlie Haas and later part of Team Angle. He is a former 3-time Intercontinental champion and 2-time Tag Team champion. While away from WWE he worked for Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Raw rating for 07/25/2016

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

Monday Night Raw did a total of 3,338,000 viewers this week, up 205,000 viewers from last week’s show. This was the best number since the June 20 episode.

Hour one did 3,412,000 viewers, followed by 3,350,000 viewers in the second hour, and then 3,254,000 viewers in the third and final hour. Last week the first live Smackdown beat Raw in the ratings so it will be interesting to see if Smackdown can top this number when ratings come out tomorrow. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)

Edge gets recurring role in new season of History’s Vikings television series

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

Deadline Hollywood is reporting that WWE Hall of Famer Edge has secured a recurring role in the upcoming fifth season of the hit History drama series Vikings.

Edge, real name Adam Copeland, will play Ketill Flatnose, a fierce and brave warrior, chosen by Floki to be one of the leaders of the Viking party intent on traveling to Iceland to set up a community there.

He previously was a series regular on Syfy’s Haven and next will be seen in WWE Studios’ action-thriller Interrogation alongside WWE Superstar Lana.

Brock Lesnar returning on WWE TV next week on Raw

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

Former WWE and UFC Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar will be returning on WWE television next week on Raw, his first WWE televised appearance since WrestleMania 32.

After the UFC announced Lesnar tested positive in an out-of-competition USADA drug test, WWE issued a statement somewhat covering themselves saying that Brock did not wrestle for WWE since April and that he wasn’t scheduled to return until August 21. The way the statement was worded made it seem like Lesnar would not be appearing on television since the actual SummerSlam pay-per-view take place but obviously WWE had changed plans.

Last week it was revealed that Brock also failed an in-competition drug test administered on the day of his UFC 200 fight. A full legal review process is in place and no sanctions will be imposed until the review is complete. Lesnar faces a 2 year suspension from the UFC for his first failed drug test and further punishment from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

There were fears that Lesnar would not be able to compete since SummerSlam is in New York and that is also controlled by an athletic commission however the NYSAC only regulates wrestling promoters and if Lesnar passes the regular fitness test the day of the show there would be no problems for him to perform.

WWE acknowledged Lesnar’s failed drug tests on WWE.COM and on Sunday at Battleground Randy Orton poked fun at Lesnar saying he could RKO him anytime with “no enhancements needed.” Orton has failed the WWE Wellness Program twice and received a 30-day and 60-day suspension for his two strikes, one in 2006 and one in 2012.

New theme song, set, and graphics for first Raw post-WWE Draft

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

There was a new theme song, somewhat of a different set, new graphics, and a new location for the three announcers, who are no longer sitting at ringside.

The new theme song is by the band Shinedown and WWE is using the song Enemies from the band’s fourth studio album titled Amaryllis. Enemies replaces The Night by Kromestatik which has been Raw’s theme song since 2012.

The set resembles a previous SummerSlam set and while the regular TitanTron screen and LED entrance are still present, there’s some extra additions that gave it a different look than the usual set that we’ve been seeing since WWE switched to HD broadcasts.

The announcers – Michael Cole, Corey Graves, and Byron Saxton – lost their ringside spot which means you won’t see any more table spots, at least not at ringside. The commentary team is now off to the right side of the entrance close to where the WWE logo is located on the stage. This is not the first time that the Raw commentary table was moved to the back as in 2003 and 2004 the commentators also had to do play-by-play from afar.

Scooby-Doo! and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon trailer released

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

The trailer for the Scooby-Doo! and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon animated movie has been released by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and WWE Studios.

The movie features the likes of Vince McMahon, The Undertaker, Triple H, Paige, Sheamus, Stephanie McMahon, Lana, Rusev, The Miz, Kofi Kingston, and Goldust all doing their own voice overs.

The synopsis of the movie reads, “When Scooby and the gang attend an off-road racing competition, the last thing they expect is to stumble upon a menacing phantom. However, before they can say “ruh-roh,” things take a turn for the worse, as Inferno schemes to sabotage the race and cause chaos for everyone. With the help of WWE Superstars Triple H, Paige and Sheamus, as well as Scooby’s new driving partner, The Undertaker, it’s up to Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. gang to save the race before it’s too late!”

It will be out on Blu-Ray, DVD, and Digital HD starting on August 9, 2016. You can see the trailer below.

Dean Ambrose coming to the Stone Cold Podcast next month

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

The Lunatic Fringe will meet the Rattlesnake on August 8 as WWE announced that the current WWE champion Dean Ambrose will be the next special guest on the Stone Cold Podcast on the WWE Network.

The interview will happen live immediately following Monday Night Raw which means Ambrose has to go “behind enemy lines” on that particular day. Typically the Stone Cold Podcasts air on Monday nights with the exception of the Foley interview which was done on a Thursday at WrestleMania Axxess in Dallas earlier this year.

This will be the 12th podcast on the WWE Network for Austin. He last interviewed AJ Styles in June.

Sasha Banks wins WWE Women’s title on Raw

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

The NXT alumni are seemingly taking over Monday Night Raw as before Finn Balor’s win for a chance to be crowned the new WWE Universal champion, there was another former NXT star who won the WWE Women’s title.

The Boss Sasha Banks has finally climbed to the mountain top and defeated Charlotte after the champ tapped out to the Banks Statement, capping off this months-long feud. The prior night Charlotte also tapped out to the Banks Statement at Battleground.

Banks has been signed to WWE since 2012 and won the NXT Women’s title at NXT Takeover: Rival in a fatal 4-way match which also included the then champion Charlotte, Becky Lynch, and Bayley. She lost the title to Bayley at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn during SummerSlam weekend last year.

She made her main roster debut on Raw in July 2015 and was also involved in the triple threat match for the new WWE Women’s title at WrestleMania this year against Charlotte and Becky Lynch.

You can see her WWE Women’s title win from last night below.

Raw gets a new title belt: The WWE Universal Championship

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/26/2016

Raw has always positioned itself as superior to Smackdown since it is the flagship show of the company and with the WWE title now on the Smackdown brand with Dean Ambrose, it was time to create another main title for Raw.

And what’s bigger than a world title? A Universal title, of course!

Raw Commissioner Stephanie McMahon and General Manager Mick Foley announced on last night’s Raw the creation of the WWE Universal Championship which will be decided at SummerSlam. The number 1 draft pick for Raw, Seth Rollins, was given an automatic road to the SummerSlam title match but his opponent had a longer route and a busy night.

Two fatal 4-way matches were held with the winner of each match then meeting later in the night to determine Rollins’ opponent. The first match had Finn Balor, Rusev, Kevin Owens, and Cesaro, a match which Finn Balor won after pinning Rusev. The second match had Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, Sheamus, and Sami Zayn. Roman Reigns won the match after pinning Chris Jericho.

In the main event of Raw, the two winners – Finn Balor and Roman Reigns – squared off and perhaps continuing his punishment for the 30 day Wellness Program suspension, Balor pinned Reigns clean after a Coupe de Grace.

BOGO free offer on all WWE t-shirts at WWE Shop

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/25/2016

WWE Shop is running yet another buy 1 get 1 free t-shirt promotion, this time it’s on all t-shirts available.

The deal includes all newly released t-shirts like The Club’s ‘No One is Safe’, Finn Balor’s ‘Demon Arrival,’ and many many more. This offer is only available for a limited time and it ends tonight at 11:59pm PST.

You can visit http://w-o.it/wweshopcom to see what’s available and make your purchase.

Sunny reaches out to Botched producers for a nose job

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/25/2016

TMZ.COM is reporting that Tammy “Sunny” Sytch has reached out to the producers of the television show Botched to help fix her nose.

The WWE Hall of Famer broke her nose on nine separate occasions and has several scar tissue that is causing weird bumps on her bridge. Apart from that she’s also hoping that the plastic surgeons could perform liposuction on her belly.

Botched is reality television series which airs on E! and follows doctors Terry Dubrow and Paul Nassif as they fix plastic surgeries gone wrong. The latest season which aired this year was supposed to have an episode featuring the late Chyna but it was pulled after Chyna passed away.

Raw and Smackdown live pre-shows to air on all WWE digital platforms

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/25/2016

WWE will be producing two 30-minute brand-exclusive pre-shows for Raw and Smackdown live every Monday and Tuesday night.

The shows will start at 7:30PM EST and will be airing on the WWE Network, the WWE App, WWE.COM, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, and Google+.

Raw and Smackdown pre-shows will be led by Jerry “The King” Lawler, Booker T and Lita.

SummerSlam concert announced for 8/18 at the Barclays Center

By

Colin Vassallo

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07/25/2016

WWE, Barclays Center and iHeartMedia today announced that the first-ever WWE SummerSlam Concert will take place Thursday, August 18 at 7PM EST at Barclays Center, with proceeds benefiting Connor’s Cure.

Tickets for the concert, headlined by hip hop recording artist Flo Rida and international pop superstar Jason Derulo, will go on sale this Friday, July 29 at 12PM EST at Ticketmaster.com. The WWE SummerSlam Concert will also include performances by recording artist Daya and emerging hip hop recording artist Jordan Hollywood, as well as appearances by WWE Superstars Stephanie McMahon, Paul “Triple H” Levesque and more.

“We are proud to bring together some of the biggest names in music and entertainment for one night to support Connor’s Cure,” said WWE Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon. “The first-ever WWE SummerSlam Concert will offer fans another opportunity to participate in SummerSlam Week while raising much-needed awareness and funds to support pediatric cancer research.”