AEW has reportedly officially signed a new multi-year, multimedia rights deal with Warner Bros. Discovery on the fifth anniversary of its flagship show, “AEW Dynamite.” Variety reported the deal was made official on Wednesday, though financial terms were not disclosed. According to the outlet’s sources, the deal is valued at upwards of $150 million per year, anonymous social media scoop account WrestleVotes claimed afterward that the number “is closer to $185 million per year,” and Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp chimed in to confirm, saying “This number is accurate.” “Dynamite” and “AEW Collision” will remain on TBS and TNT, but will also stream live on Max simultaneously for subscribers in the United States. Shows will be available to stream on-demand at the beginning of 2025. As for AEW’s ever-increasing pay-per-view schedule, Variety revealed that PPVs will be available for purchase on Max later on in 2025 at a discounted price per show. In a statement seemingly provided to Variety, AEW President Tony Khan said the company is honored to announce the extension of its partnership.
“This extension continues the tradition of iconic wrestling events broadcast on TBS and TNT, while also establishing a new legacy for AEW through weekly live streams on Max for years to come,” Khan said. “We thank David Zaslav, Kathleen Finch and everyone at WBD for their tireless support of All Elite Wrestling since its inception, as well as the AEW fans, talent and staff that helped make this possible.”
Variety reported that the deal includes “enhanced distribution rights across social media.” It also includes “potential” new programming on both linear and digital platforms. Though former AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland was recorded last week saying AEW was taking “WWE SmackDown’s” place on Fox, Variety did not report anything of the like on Wednesday. Variety’s report also did not include anything regarding “AEW Shockwave,” a term the company recently trademarked, which is rumored to be another show set to air on FS1.
Fightful Select, meanwhile, is reporting that claims that WBD own an undisclosed stake in AEW can’t be confirmed, as sources in AEW and WBD said they hadn’t heard anything about WBD having an ownership stake in the company. Meanwhile, Fightful reports that “AEW Collision” and “AEW Dynamite” are set to remain on Saturdays and Wednesdays, respectively; as for “AEW Rampage,” it’s possible the show could end up on another network, but if so the “Rampage” archives would not be added to to Max in January along with “Dynamite” and “Collision.” AEW will continue to charge for PPVs, as the company has no interest in “cannibalizing” the PPV market by making it subscription-based, citing losses by WWE and UFC since moving to a subscription model, but the promotion is aware of the negativity generated by the idea of paywalling PPVs and then charging more for them. Fightful claims AEW may change to a different model in the future.
Finally, there are no known plans in regards to bringing Ring of Honor to TruTV, but the end of WBD’s exclusivity clause means AEW is now able to negotiate with other networks, meaning there’s a possibility for a return of programming like “AEW Dark” as well as the rumored Fox deal.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
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