The WWE Network has been in the news recently due to their billion dollar deal with NBC Universal and Comcast. However, one thing lost in the shuffle during this major announcement has been the fact that the WWE Network has actually been losing subscribers prior to today’s big news. According to data from Wrestlenomics, citing the WWE’s corporate website, there were less paid subscribers after WrestleMania in 2020 than in 2018 or 2019.
The day after WrestleMania 2020, the WWE Network had 1.62 million paid subscribers, while in 2019 there was 1.77 million paid subscribers and in 2018 the WWE Network had 1.81 million paid subscribers the day after WrestleMania. It should also be noted that in Q3 of 2020 there was a minor drop of United States based subscribers – going from 1,207 in Q2 of 2020 to 1,172 United States based subs in Q3 of 2020. The expectation was always to hit 2 million paid subscribers consistently in the U.S. which didn’t happen.
In other news concerning the WWE Network, it has been confirmed that the United States version of the WWE Network will be folding into the NBC Universal over-the-top streaming service Peacock. WWE’s Chief Revenue Officer and President Nick Khan said the following about the move:
“We feel great about the financials. Otherwise we wouldn’t have done the deal. To have WrestleMania in particular — which is our Super Bowl — available [for no extra cost] on Peacock is quite different from other models you’re seeing.”
