WWE and A&E announce a “multi-year expansion” deal
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and A&E have agreed on a "multi-year expansion" deal.
The deal, which guarantees 130 hours of new content, will see the airing of 35 new episodes of the genre-defining, award-winning franchise “Biography: WWE Legends". As part of the agreement, the company is also planning to start production of 24 new episodes of “WWE’s Most Wanted Treasures.” In addition, A&E has demanded 40 hours of the new series, “WWE Rivals” which will revolve around the fine details about the iconic clashes in WWE history.
Elaine Frontain Bryant, Executive Vice President and Head of Programming for A&E quoted:
“The collaboration between these two powerhouse brands has already proven to resonate with audiences and we look forward to working together to create premium content with broad appeal, '' said Bryant. ''WWE’s incredible fanbase and talent roster are a great complement to A&E’s unique brand of in-depth storytelling that take fans behind the curtain and we are thankful to the entire WWE team for their partnership.”
WWE President Nick Khan hailed A&E as an amazing and trusted partner of the wrestling promotion.
“A&E is an amazing partner with an impressive lineup of signature series across its networks,'' said Khan. ''The expansion of our partnership will allow us to continue creating a massive slate of new content with a trusted partner, while further establishing A&E as a destination for WWE fans for years to come.”
Details on why WWE is priorotizing FOX over USA Network
WWE has recently been giving a lot more attention to FOX than USA Network.
FOX is in agreement with the company to air SmackDown, while USA Network takes care of RAW. FOX has allowed the wrestling promotion to cater to every home in the United States, massively helping the company get hold of mainstream audiences.
In an episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer explained that WWE has thrown most of their premium stars to the blue brand to keep FOX happy. He opined that the network does not need WWE to succeed.
“Fox doesn’t need them, but they’re doing everything to appease Fox. They put Lesnar on Fox,'' Meltzer said. ''They put Ronda Rousey on Fox. Charlotte Flair is on Fox which Fox has always wanted, so they got her. It’s very clear right now that SmackDown is getting the best end of the deal because of Fox." (H/T - Ringside News)
Are you excited about the new content coming on the A&E network? Do let us know in the comments section below!