Welcome to another edition of The pro wrestling post. This week we look at the changes going on with TNA and the WWE.
TNA going live – A lot of changes going on for TNA. First, news that it was moving up an hour starting May 31st, then the big King Mo signing and now TNA is going to be live throughout the summer.
Payout Take: Going live is supposed to promote the time change for TNA but it will be interesting if this will help or hurt the production value of the product. Despite RAW being live most of the time, I am not sure of its overall value in drawing ratings.
RAW going to 3 hours – Perhaps in an effort to trump TNA’s news of going live starting May 31st, the WWE announced that its anchor program, “Monday Night RAW,” is going to 3 hours starting with its 1,000 episode on July 23rd. The news was first reported via tweet through Jon Cena. Cena was rated the No. 1 most influential athlete on Twitter last month.
Payout Take: Good way of using social media to filter its news. I like how the WWE utilizes its social media so that the end user feels as though there is value for following the likes of John Cena. As far as going to 3 hours, I understand the RAW receives good ratings, but how much is too much for one night? WCW did this during the Monday Night Wars and at a certain point there’s too much filler during a three hour block.
Brooke Hogan signs with TNA and Ashley Flair signs with WWE – News came down that Brooke Hogan is following her dad’s footsteps by signing on with TNA. Although she will not be in the ring, she will be an executive with TNA and develop its female talent. Flair’s daughter has signed a developmental deal with the WWE where she will train as a wrestler according to Dave Metzler.
Payout Take: It sounds like Hogan will be in a Stephanie McMahon sort of role and will eventually become involved in some way with the story lines in front of the camera. On the other hand, Flair’s signing has many speculating that Ric Flair will return to the WWE. What these two signings show is that wrestling is the family business for so many wrestlers. Hogan’s signing will deliver more impact (no pun intended) to her organization sooner. Her aspirations to be a singer/actress have now translated into being a performer for TNA. For TNA, it’s another sign that it is making a major attempt to be competitive with the WWE.
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