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Post by ASR (therockisback) on May 22, 2018 19:24:07 GMT -5
SD has to 100% remain live, as I doubt FOX would give em $1 billion just to be taped which would lower the ratings.
Instead of ending the brand spilt, I'd beef up the SD roster even more by bringing stars back and making it the true number one show.
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Post by bigshab421 on May 23, 2018 7:00:37 GMT -5
Unless they got more for Raw, I'm not sure why they wouldn't go with Fox for both Raw & SD. I just hope SD doesn't get flooded with Reigns and Lesnar
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Haze
Mid-Carder
Joined on: Jan 28, 2018 21:24:41 GMT -5
Posts: 263
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Post by Haze on May 23, 2018 7:54:18 GMT -5
Wish they would bump smack down to TV14 and be more edgy and keep Raw PG for the kids or vice versa
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Post by J12 on May 23, 2018 10:00:06 GMT -5
We’re still a long way away from this move, but I think the brand split will be over by the time the move to Fox happens. They need high ratings, so they’ll have to have the top stars on Smackdown. Sure guys like AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan are top stars, but we don’t even know what the landscape of the roster will be like in fall 2019. And Vince won’t do anything that would harm Raw either. This is uncharted territory, though. Vince has never done anything to favor Smackdown over Raw to date, but Smackdown has also never been on a network the size of Fox earning this much money. If anything, I think this strengthens the likelihood of the brand split sticking around. These networks are under totally separate ownership umbrellas, and they're probably going to want some exclusivity. Unless they got more for Raw, I'm not sure why they wouldn't go with Fox for both Raw & SD. I just hope SD doesn't get flooded with Reigns and Lesnar Fox wasn't going to give up two nights of primetime per week to WWE. They're already going to lose two in the fall (one to Smackdown, one to the NFL.) That means one of the two shows (likely Smackdown) would have gone to a subsidiary network like FS1. Less exposure, less money. One show would have gotten an upgrade, the other a downgrade. This way, one show stays the same (albeit with a ton more money behind it), and the other gets a huge upgrade. USA is a drastically larger network than FS1, and they offered massive money for Raw.
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Post by Rude Awakening on May 23, 2018 10:36:14 GMT -5
ESPN just purchased UFC rights for 1.5 billion
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y13
Superstar
Joined on: Oct 17, 2014 22:06:35 GMT -5
Posts: 821
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Post by y13 on May 23, 2018 12:29:42 GMT -5
We’re still a long way away from this move, but I think the brand split will be over by the time the move to Fox happens. They need high ratings, so they’ll have to have the top stars on Smackdown. Sure guys like AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan are top stars, but we don’t even know what the landscape of the roster will be like in fall 2019. And Vince won’t do anything that would harm Raw either. This is uncharted territory, though. Vince has never done anything to favor Smackdown over Raw to date, but Smackdown has also never been on a network the size of Fox earning this much money. If anything, I think this strengthens the likelihood of the brand split sticking around. These networks are under totally separate ownership umbrellas, and they're probably going to want some exclusivity. Unless they got more for Raw, I'm not sure why they wouldn't go with Fox for both Raw & SD. I just hope SD doesn't get flooded with Reigns and Lesnar Fox wasn't going to give up two nights of primetime per week to WWE. They're already going to lose two in the fall (one to Smackdown, one to the NFL.) That means one of the two shows (likely Smackdown) would have gone to a subsidiary network like FS1. Less exposure, less money. One show would have gotten an upgrade, the other a downgrade. This way, one show stays the same (albeit with a ton more money behind it), and the other gets a huge upgrade. USA is a drastically larger network than FS1, and they offered massive money for Raw. Makes sense. Still a long way away so we’ll see. I think we can all agree that hopefully by then, Road Dogg is no longer head writer. While I still giggled, that “king of soft style” comment from AJ had his fingerprints all over it I’m sure. The landscape of WWE could be totally different by Fall 2019 so it’s hard to speculate now. Who knows who’ll be around and who they would have brought in by that point
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enigmafigs
Superstar
Sup.
Joined on: Nov 26, 2017 13:37:26 GMT -5
Posts: 648
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Post by enigmafigs on May 23, 2018 16:07:28 GMT -5
No way they will put them against each other. Well, Fox does have an opening on Monday nights now that they cancelled Lucifer... grrr... cancelled one of my favorite shows... stupid Fox network. Sorry, got sidetracked. What were we talking about? Hopefully DC Universe picks it up. It looks like its going to be quite a good streaming service… i’m excited for it.
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Post by marino13 on May 23, 2018 16:34:37 GMT -5
I don't understand how anyone can think this means the end of the brand extension. If anything, this will cement it further. WWE is going to make a fortune off each show, so there is no reason to make them exactly the same as each other. Especially with the same talent doing the same thing on both shows. It'd get stale fast.
If anything now is the time we can expect new signings, different stages, different announcers, different PPVs (even though they just combined). IMO this is the kick in the ass the WWE has needed.
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Post by bigshab421 on May 24, 2018 7:46:59 GMT -5
I don't understand how anyone can think this means the end of the brand extension. If anything, this will cement it further. WWE is going to make a fortune off each show, so there is no reason to make them exactly the same as each other. Especially with the same talent doing the same thing on both shows. It'd get stale fast. If anything now is the time we can expect new signings, different stages, different announcers, different PPVs (even though they just combined). IMO this is the kick in the ass the WWE has needed. They just go 1 BILLION FOR SMACKDOWN.........For Smackdown. Do you really think they will strive to make stuff better? They got a billion for a mostly terrible product and will certainly stay status quo once the move starts.
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Post by Next Man’s Knowing Rock on May 24, 2018 17:31:40 GMT -5
the break in TV will be refreshing and i dont see how they cant just adjust the schedule to make the show live They can. But it's going to suck for all of the production staff who previously worked two consecutive days a week (three on PPV weeks) and will now either be doing the double the travel or spending a bunch more days away from home.
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Post by marino13 on May 24, 2018 19:00:11 GMT -5
I don't understand how anyone can think this means the end of the brand extension. If anything, this will cement it further. WWE is going to make a fortune off each show, so there is no reason to make them exactly the same as each other. Especially with the same talent doing the same thing on both shows. It'd get stale fast. If anything now is the time we can expect new signings, different stages, different announcers, different PPVs (even though they just combined). IMO this is the kick in the ass the WWE has needed. They just go 1 BILLION FOR SMACKDOWN.........For Smackdown. Do you really think they will strive to make stuff better? They got a billion for a mostly terrible product and will certainly stay status quo once the move starts.Yeah, that's why I said it. Especially if Fox has expectations that WWE wants to live up to.
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Post by bigshab421 on May 25, 2018 7:01:25 GMT -5
They just go 1 BILLION FOR SMACKDOWN.........For Smackdown. Do you really think they will strive to make stuff better? They got a billion for a mostly terrible product and will certainly stay status quo once the move starts. Yeah, that's why I said it. Especially if Fox has expectations that WWE wants to live up to. Fox's expectation is that they stay the course, don't risk anything and basically keep producing the same content, because the same fans like us, still tune in every week. Trust me, the first month on Fox may be a little different (new rosters and such) but after that, its back to the same formulaic show.
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Post by marino13 on May 25, 2018 9:41:42 GMT -5
Yeah, that's why I said it. Especially if Fox has expectations that WWE wants to live up to. Fox's expectation is that they stay the course, don't risk anything and basically keep producing the same content, because the same fans like us, still tune in every week. Trust me, the first month on Fox may be a little different (new rosters and such) but after that, its back to the same formulaic show. My bad, I was unaware that you were in the meetings.
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banthafett
Mid-Carder
Joined on: Jan 15, 2012 13:20:21 GMT -5
Posts: 413
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Post by banthafett on May 25, 2018 13:16:17 GMT -5
Fox's expectation is that they stay the course, don't risk anything and basically keep producing the same content, because the same fans like us, still tune in every week. Trust me, the first month on Fox may be a little different (new rosters and such) but after that, its back to the same formulaic show. My bad, I was unaware that you were in the meetings. No, he knows WWE doesn't have the balls, or talent behind the scenes to change things up. They got all this money with the product being bland for how many years now? They are not changing a damn thing.
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Post by marino13 on May 25, 2018 13:28:13 GMT -5
My bad, I was unaware that you were in the meetings. No, he knows WWE doesn't have the balls, or talent behind the scenes to change things up. They got all this money with the product being bland for how many years now? They are not changing a damn thing. If you say so.
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Post by bigshab421 on May 29, 2018 6:55:10 GMT -5
No, he knows WWE doesn't have the balls, or talent behind the scenes to change things up. They got all this money with the product being bland for how many years now? They are not changing a damn thing. If you say so. Right. Let me ask you a question. If Fox paid this much for the B-Show of WWE, and sees that they consistently average a 2.8 rating week in and week out, what is going to force WWE to improve the product? Fox already paid and they know what they are getting, and I am sure that as long as ratings do not dip below that they will be happy. Why do you think they will improve their product? I'm genuinely interested in your answer. They already have a solid viewer base, sponsorship, and now a ridiculous TV deal. Now being on free prime time television, their numbers will most likely improve automatically. There's nothing pushing them to create new, fresh, and exciting content.
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Post by marino13 on May 29, 2018 9:13:36 GMT -5
Right. Let me ask you a question. If Fox paid this much for the B-Show of WWE, and sees that they consistently average a 2.8 rating week in and week out, what is going to force WWE to improve the product? Fox already paid and they know what they are getting, and I am sure that as long as ratings do not dip below that they will be happy. Why do you think they will improve their product? I'm genuinely interested in your answer. They already have a solid viewer base, sponsorship, and now a ridiculous TV deal. Now being on free prime time television, their numbers will most likely improve automatically. There's nothing pushing them to create new, fresh, and exciting content. Rumors were Fox wanted RAW... bad. But when that wasn't an option, they overpaid for SD instead. At least when you compare to what RAW got from NBC/USA. So it only makes sense for Fox to want/expect SD to be the number one show. Or at least on par with RAW.
Plus this is amazing exposure for WWE. Fox is one of the big four as far as TV stations go. So now SD will be available in more homes than RAW. So whether WWE wants it to be or not, SD is probably going to become their "A" show. Their cash cow. So why wouldn't WWE put SD on the front burner? Why would WWE refuse to take advantage of that and try to pull more casual fans in?
I just don't see any scenario where Fox would say, "Here's a check for close to a billion dollars, now go phone it in. We expect nothing but mediocrity. Give us more of the same old sh*t, and we're good". That just doesn't sound like good business.
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Post by bigshab421 on May 29, 2018 10:05:54 GMT -5
Right. Let me ask you a question. If Fox paid this much for the B-Show of WWE, and sees that they consistently average a 2.8 rating week in and week out, what is going to force WWE to improve the product? Fox already paid and they know what they are getting, and I am sure that as long as ratings do not dip below that they will be happy. Why do you think they will improve their product? I'm genuinely interested in your answer. They already have a solid viewer base, sponsorship, and now a ridiculous TV deal. Now being on free prime time television, their numbers will most likely improve automatically. There's nothing pushing them to create new, fresh, and exciting content. Rumors were Fox wanted RAW... bad. But when that wasn't an option, they overpaid for SD instead. At least when you compare to what RAW got from NBC/USA. So it only makes sense for Fox to want/expect SD to be the number one show. Or at least on par with RAW.
Plus this is amazing exposure for WWE. Fox is one of the big four as far as TV stations go. So now SD will be available in more homes than RAW. So whether WWE wants it to be or not, SD is probably going to become their "A" show. Their cash cow. So why wouldn't WWE put SD on the front burner? Why would WWE refuse to take advantage of that and try to pull more casual fans in?
I just don't see any scenario where Fox would say, "Here's a check for close to a billion dollars, now go phone it in. We expect nothing but mediocrity. Give us more of the same old sh*t, and we're good". That just doesn't sound like good business.
All I am saying is that they landed this deal with content that has been phoned in for over a decade. I'm sure when they switch to Fox, they will spice up presentation and whatnot, but I don't expect them to turn their programming into super compelling stuff. They have the deal, they have the investors and sponsors, they will stay the course and continue to rake in the money while not doing anything out of the ordinary. They aren't going to take risks now with this deal, there's no reason to. They aren't fighting for their television livelihood. They will put out the same mediocre content, and everyone will watch because it is the only "big time" promotion on tv.
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Post by marino13 on May 29, 2018 10:37:04 GMT -5
Rumors were Fox wanted RAW... bad. But when that wasn't an option, they overpaid for SD instead. At least when you compare to what RAW got from NBC/USA. So it only makes sense for Fox to want/expect SD to be the number one show. Or at least on par with RAW.
Plus this is amazing exposure for WWE. Fox is one of the big four as far as TV stations go. So now SD will be available in more homes than RAW. So whether WWE wants it to be or not, SD is probably going to become their "A" show. Their cash cow. So why wouldn't WWE put SD on the front burner? Why would WWE refuse to take advantage of that and try to pull more casual fans in?
I just don't see any scenario where Fox would say, "Here's a check for close to a billion dollars, now go phone it in. We expect nothing but mediocrity. Give us more of the same old sh*t, and we're good". That just doesn't sound like good business.
All I am saying is that they landed this deal with content that has been phoned in for over a decade. I'm sure when they switch to Fox, they will spice up presentation and whatnot, but I don't expect them to turn their programming into super compelling stuff. They have the deal, they have the investors and sponsors, they will stay the course and continue to rake in the money while not doing anything out of the ordinary. They aren't going to take risks now with this deal, there's no reason to. They aren't fighting for their television livelihood. They will put out the same mediocre content, and everyone will watch because it is the only "big time" promotion on tv. And all I'm saying is, I don't think Fox would dish out that kinda cash for an inferior show. They probably knew what WWE had gotten for RAW. They probably knew SD had no home next year. But they still gave WWE all that money. So obvious have intentions on doing something with it.
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Post by bigshab421 on May 29, 2018 12:02:11 GMT -5
All I am saying is that they landed this deal with content that has been phoned in for over a decade. I'm sure when they switch to Fox, they will spice up presentation and whatnot, but I don't expect them to turn their programming into super compelling stuff. They have the deal, they have the investors and sponsors, they will stay the course and continue to rake in the money while not doing anything out of the ordinary. They aren't going to take risks now with this deal, there's no reason to. They aren't fighting for their television livelihood. They will put out the same mediocre content, and everyone will watch because it is the only "big time" promotion on tv. And all I'm saying is, I don't think Fox would dish out that kinda cash for an inferior show. They probably knew what WWE had gotten for RAW. They probably knew SD had no home next year. But they still gave WWE all that money. So obvious have intentions on doing something with it. Like I said, I expect some changes in maybe presentation and maybe format, but I doubt we are going to see them take major risks and be edgy. SDL is already a totally superior show to Raw, so I don't expect much to change except the way its presented. They plan on it replacing UFC because it will, simply because of the consistent amount of viewers they bring in. That base of people who watch weekly, will follow the show wherever they put it.
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