The following was posted on numerous websites today:
“NEW YORK, March 10 /PRNewswire/ — Spike TV ends talks with the WWE. “After several months of negotiations, we have decided to end our discussions about extending our relationship with the WWE beyond September 2005. Moving forward, Spike TV will expand its investments in original programming and new acquisitions for its core audience.”
If you’re wondering why this happened, The Hollywood Reporter has already picked up the story. You can read more about it at THIS LINK. The main reason for the switch is that WWE asked for a deal that had SpikeTV pay them $40 million per year, which is more than 40% of what WWE has paid over the last five years. It’s certainly a crazy deal. With SpikeTV’s new direction, and new boss, RAW’s future was uncertain. It is, however, made official that the company has locked a deal with the USA Network. Linda and Shane McMahon were were seen in the NBC offices in New York earlier last week, as well.
Monday Night RAW enjoyed its peak in ratings on the USA Network, and was the #1 show on all cable TV in 2000. The popularity of the company definitely helped USA Network as well. After they dropped wrestling, they gave the time slot to a new series – Monk, which as many of you know, turned out to be one of the more successfull and smarter moves they had made. RAW got worse, while USA remained the #1 cable channel with their new exciting show. After some 5 years, WWE programming (RAW, Sunday Night Heat, Experience, and Velocity) will be moving back to the USA Network.
