7 months ago
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With decades of weekly shows and pay-per-views, as well as the archive of numerous other wrestling promotions, WWE's video library is worth quite a lot. Since 2021, that library has been housed on Peacock in the United States, but that deal is set to expire in 2026. Appearing on "The Town," WWE President Nick Khan addressed the beginnings of the deal with NBCUniversal while teasing the possible future for the promotion's catalog.
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"We love the NBCU folks," Khan said. "They truly have been great. We were one of the first people, I think, who bought into Peacock."
Khan stated that he helped negotiate the deal shortly after starting with WWE. Before signing the Peacock deal, WWE's library was available on the company's own streaming service, the WWE Network. That service still exists internationally but was shut down in the United States following the migration to Peacock.
Two major factors played into the decision to go from the WWE Network to Peacock, according to Khan. He stated that WWE executives were well aware that they aren't a technology company, and maintaining a successful streaming service requires a lot of effort and research. Additionally, Khan said they knew people would begin canceling streaming services over time as costs increased.
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While it's possible that WWE may renew its deal with Peacock, it has already been announced that "WWE Raw" will be heading to Netflix next year, with PLEs and the company's other shows joining the deal in international markets. Because of that, it seems likely that WWE will bring its major shows and back catalog to Netflix when the contract with NBCUniversal comes to a close, but nothing is certain yet. "WWE SmackDown" will move from Fox to the USA Network later this year, meaning that there will still be an active business relationship between WWE and NBCUniversal.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Town" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
