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orld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has announced a five-year, USD$1 billion (AUD$1.3 billion) exclusive US streaming rights partnership with NBC Universal’s streaming platform, Peacock.
The deal will see the WWE Network app shut down as the OTT service will migrate to Peacock, taking a total of 1.5 million subscribers to the NBC platform.
Peacock is expected to launch its version of WWE Network on March 18, accompanied by more than 17,000 hours of new, original, and library WWE Network programming made available on demand and via a 24/7 channel.
Peacock executive vice president and chief revenue officer, Rick Cordella, said the two companies will share details on managing customer accounts closer to the March launch of the new platform.
“NBCUniversal has a long-standing relationship with WWE that began nearly 30 years ago with Monday Night Raw on USA,” Cordella said.
“WWE has always tapped into the cultural zeitgeist with spectacular live events and larger-than-life characters, and we are thrilled to be the exclusive home for WWE Network and its millions of fans across the country.
“WWE Network is a transformative addition to the platform and complements Peacock’s massive catalogue of iconic movies and shows, as well as the best live news and sports, from NBCUniversal and beyond,” he said.
WWE president and chief revenue officer, Nick Khan, said: “We are thrilled to further the long-standing and trusted partnership WWE has with NBCUniversal.”
“Peacock is an innovative platform that will enable us to showcase our most significant events, including WrestleMania, and provide the extraordinary entertainment our fans have come to expect with the combination of premium WWE content, live sports, news, films, and television programmes,” Khan said.
Peacock Premium subscribers, along with current WWE Network subscribers, will also get free access to all live pay-per-view (PPV) WWE events, starting with the Fastlane event on March 21.
Any WWE fan wishing to purchase PVV subscriptions for events will not need a Peacock subscription to access the content but will continue to follow traditional PPV methods.
WWE has confirmed the partnership will not affect existing WWE Network subscribers outside of the US.
