Current:Home > ContactWWE’s ‘Raw’ is moving to Netflix next year in a major streaming deal worth more than $5 billion -Secure Growth Academy
WWE’s ‘Raw’ is moving to Netflix next year in a major streaming deal worth more than $5 billion
View
Date:2025-04-17 20:31:10
WWE’s weekly television show “Raw” will move to Netflix next year as part of a major streaming deal worth more than $5 billion.
TKO Group Holdings Inc., which houses WWE and UFC, said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that the agreement is for 10 years, with Netflix having an option to extend the deal for an additional 10 years. There’s also an opt out available to Netflix after the initial five years.
“Raw,” which debuted in 1993, has produced 1,600 episodes to date and features wrestlers such as Cody Rhodes, Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins and Rhea Ripley. The three-hour program currently airs on USA Network and its media rights were considered a hot commodity over the past several months, particularly after the WWE return of CM Punk in November, with many speculating it could land at any number of networks or streaming platforms.
“We are excited to have WWE Raw, with its huge and passionate multigenerational fan base, on Netflix,” Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said in a prepared statement.
WWE said Tuesday that “Raw” will air on Netflix starting in January 2025. This will impact viewers in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Latin America and other territories. WWE said that it will also impact additional countries and regions over time.
“This deal is transformative,” Mark Shapiro, TKO president and COO, said in a prepared statement. “It marries the can’t-miss WWE product with Netflix’s extraordinary global reach and locks in significant and predictable economics for many years. Our partnership fundamentally alters and strengthens the media landscape, dramatically expands the reach of WWE, and brings weekly live appointment viewing to Netflix.”
WWE also said that its documentaries, original series and forthcoming projects will be available on Netflix internationally starting in 2025.
The move of “Raw” to Netflix follows the announcement in September by World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. that “Friday Night Smackdown,” would be moving from Fox to USA Network in 2024 under a new five-year domestic media rights partnership with NBCUniversal. As part of the agreement, WWE will also produce four prime-time specials per year that will air on NBC, starting in the 2024/2025 season. This will be the first time that WWE will air on the network in prime time.
Speaking on CNBC, TKO CEO Ariel Emanuel said that he didn’t believe there’s a move away from traditional television networks or cable networks, but that streaming platforms were becoming another option, as seen through its “Raw” deal with Netflix.
“This is the streaming play. For us, it’s the next step,” he said.
WWE also announced Tuesday that it reached a deal with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson that will give the star the rights to his nickname. Johnson will also join the board of TKO Group.
Shares of TKO Group jumped more than 19% in early trading.
veryGood! (34)
Related
- Jorge Ramos reveals his final day with 'Noticiero Univision': 'It's been quite a ride'
- Jordan Chiles Olympic Medal Controversy: USA Gymnastics Reveal Further Issues With Ruling
- Get Designer Michael Kors Bags on Sale Including a $398 Purse for $59 & More Deals Starting at $49
- Jordan Chiles Olympic Medal Controversy: USA Gymnastics Reveal Further Issues With Ruling
- Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
- Alec Baldwin’s Rust Director Joel Souza Says On-Set Shooting “Ruined” Him
- US shoppers sharply boosted spending at retailers in July despite higher prices
- 'It Ends With Us' shows some realities of domestic violence. Here's what it got wrong.
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Wildfires are growing under climate change, and their smoke threatens farmworkers, study says
Ranking
- New Zealand official reverses visa refusal for US conservative influencer Candace Owens
- Traveling? Here Are the Best Life-Saving Travel Accessories You Need To Pack, Starting at Just $7
- Usher concert postponed hours before tour opener in Atlanta
- She was last seen July 31. Her husband reported her missing Aug. 5. Where is Mamta Kafle?
- Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
- How a small group of nuns in rural Kansas vex big companies with their investment activism
- Proposal to allow local police to make arrests near Arizona border with Mexico will appear on ballot
- A stowaway groundhog is elevated to local icon
Recommendation
Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
Miami father, 9-year-old son killed after Waverunner slams into concrete seawall in Keys
White House says deals struck to cut prices of popular Medicare drugs that cost $50 billion yearly
Police identify suspect in break-in of Trump campaign office in Virginia
'Most Whopper
Indiana Fever to host 2025 WNBA All-Star game
The president of Columbia University has resigned, effective immediately
Andrew Shue's Sister Elisabeth Shares Rare Update on His Life Amid Marilee Fiebig Romance