Posted:
Oct 5, 2024 2:07 pm
Streaming Wars is a weekly opinion column by IGN’s Streaming Editor, Amelia Emberwing. Check out the last entry: Streaming Dominated Fantastic Fest This Year: Here’s Where You Can Watch at Home .
Earlier this week, it was announced that All Elite Wrestling’s programming will begin simulcasting on (HBO) Max as of January 2025. This marks the latest sporting event to make the move to the streaming space, as each game works to ensure they have the widest audience possible, but it also may mark the end of a whole lot of people no longer bothering to pay for cable.
At this point, the only two things that I keep forking over money to the cable company for are football and AEW. Now that AEW is giving a simulcast option, is there really any point in continuing to pay exorbitant cable fees in addition to what I drop on streaming platforms? There are plenty of cord cutting options for football (Fubo or SlingTV, NFL+, etc.), and even if I wanted to keep my cable package just for sports, I would only need it for half of the year at this point. I suspect I am not the only one of the few remaining cable subscribers below 50 who are in this boat.
Wrestling may have a smaller demographic than other major sporting events, but losing both WWE and AEW in 2025 will still be a blow to cable providers’ bottom line. What’s more important, though, is how this is going to impact viewers.
When WWE announced their Netflix partnership earlier in the year, I noted that it was a great deal for WWE, but a bum one for fans . In the US, you’ll still need a cable subscription to watch NXT and SmackDown. This comes after Peacock’s deal with WWE expired at the beginning of October, moving NXT from the streamer to the CW Network.
This is not the same for AEW, as their deal is solely with Max.
The only show in AEW’s catalogue that is in question is their smallest. Variety noted that Collision and Dynamite would continue their broadcast deals with TNT and TBS , but Rampage (which airs on Friday nights) was not specifically mentioned. Given that the show is only an hour and frequently tapes alongside one of AEW’s longer offerings — no one is filing into an arena for just 60 minutes, after all — it’s possible that Rampage becomes a streaming-only property moving forward or AEW decides to drop their third program altogether in favor of a new show or focusing solely on the other two. Either way, the broadcast deals do not include the little guy. So, unless something changes, if you’re holding on to that cable subscription for AEW-related purposes, you don’t have to any more.
This deal also means great things for the exposure of promotions like NJPW and CMLL.
By keeping their broadcast options open and expanding into the streaming space, AEW has given themselves tremendous runway to not only grow, but to reach a whole new world of fans. We all know that cable has been all but phased out by younger generations. While TNT did offer a next-day option on their website after the episodes had aired, it was a difficult and clunky way to access them. Having the option available on a platform they already subscribe to will most certainly increase AEW’s viewership.
This deal also means great things for the exposure of promotions like NJPW (New Japan Pro-Wrestling) and CMLL (Consejo Mundial de Luca Libre), and fans who are often seeking ways to see more of their talented roster. AEW has partnered with NJPW for years and has ramped up their CMLL partnership a great deal in the last six months. By expanding to streaming, AEW brings more eyes to these (domestically) underseen but constantly impressive companies.
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