will become the exclusive home of the WWE Network following a landmark, five-year deal between WWE and NBCUniversal.
According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the agreement will see WWE close its WWE Network streaming service in the US and bring its consent solely to Peacock in the U.S. going forward. The deal reportedly costs over $1 billion.
The WWE Network branding will continue to appear on Peacock which will bring both old and new WWE content to the streaming service. That means all PPVs like WrestleMania, in-ring shows like NXT and NXT UK and replays of Raw and SmackDown, WWE Icons and Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions will become Peacock exclusives from mid-March, according to the report.
Peacock boss Rick Cordella said: “One of the key things we’re trying to do is differentiate ourselves through live events and sports, and this premium content is a cornerstone of our strategy.”
In a statement, WWE chief revenue officer Nick Khan said: “We are thrilled to further the long-standing and trusted partnership WWE has with NBCUniversal. Peacock is an innovative platform that will enable us to showcase our most significant events, including WrestleMania, and provide the extraordinary entertainment our fans have come to expect with the combination of premium WWE content, live sports, news, films, and television programs.”
Peacock will launch WWE Network on their service beginning March 18. This deal will bring over 17,000 hours of new, original and historical WWE Network content to a dedicated, 24/7 channel. The full offering of content is:
- All live pay-per-view events including WrestleMania and SummerSlam; Fastlane will be the first WWE pay-per-view to stream on Peacock on Sunday, March 21.
- Original series like Steve Austin Broken Skull Sessions, Undertaker: The Last Ride and the all-new WWE Icons
- In-ring shows like NXT, NXT UK and WWE 205 Live, as well as replays of Raw and SmackDown
- WWE Network archives, including every WWE, WCW and ECW pay-per-view event in history
- Groundbreaking documentaries, including WWE 24, WWE Untold, and WWE 365
- And, starting in 2022, one signature documentary annually.
This is pretty good news for wrestling fans, as all of this content will be made available on Peacock Premium for $4.99 a month. That’s a $5 dollar saving over the $10-a-month asking price for the WWE Network. You can also opt for the $9.99-a-month-month Peacock Premium Plus subscription to remove ads from on-demand content.
