With dwindling amounts of subscribers to the WWE Network, it wasn’t a shock to see Vince McMahon make his WWE television return to announce that the Network would be free for the month of November. This would include the Survivor Series PPV and suggests that the company is looking to get as many subscribers hooked on the Network as possible to make it more successful.
Something that was introduced on Monday night was the idea of a bonus match being exclusively on the Network. With no commitments and a need to pay, it was like a “Money-Back Guarantee” for people new to the Network to see not only more wrestling action, but a title match with a character who has been undefeated.
(For those who haven’t seen it yet keep scrolling).
It didn’t come as a shock to see Rusev reign victorious over Sheamus in the Network’s US Title match. The idea that he could have potentially suffered his first loss was a tempting factor to people to check the match out on the Network, making him the best choice to one half of the first bonus match on the service.
(For those avoiding the potential spoiler, you may resume reading).
Add in that it’s a title match and there’s a chance for great success. However, for some people who want to see the WWE in HD, some cable providers only offer an East Coast feed to West Coast viewers. The bonus match couldn’t be seen until 11pm Pacific Time after it would have been shown live at 8pm Pacific Time using the East Coast HD feed. There was a risk for spoilers and the chance of some people even forgetting to see RAW on the normal West Coast feed after seeing it live (legally) hours earlier.
While that would be the biggest downside for some fans, a 3 hour wait isn’t enough to get rid of an interesting deal to spice up WWE Network interest. Here’s to seeing how successful the post RAW bonus match exclusively on the WWE Network will be.
-Celine
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