WWE May Not Demand Exclusivity With New Television Rights Deals

The CW will become the new hope for WWE NXT starting in October 2024. That will be a big get for the network, but NXT may not be the only pro wrestling program on the network.

Billy Corgan was shell shocked when The CW announced that they are picking up NXT. He thought that he had secured a deal for The NWA. That will only mean the NWA will appear on the CW app for now, but there’s hope that the show may still make the lineup.

During Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer mentioned that the current WWE leadership is not overly focused on exclusivity in their television rights agreements. He highlighted that the WWE NXT deal permits the CW Network to broadcast additional wrestling content.

“I don’t think that WWE would demand exclusivity and I don’t know that WBD would let them demand exclusivity. At the same time, does that mean they would want two different wrestling products? This is all wait and see.”

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It remains uncertain whether WWE would insist on exclusivity, and there’s uncertainty about whether Warner Brothers Discovery would permit such a demand. The question arises whether they would be interested in having two distinct wrestling products. The situation is still unfolding, and we’ll have to wait to see how it develops.

AEW has called WBD their home since starting on television. Now, as they look toward new television deals of their own, WWE may want to share the WBD landscape. This could be a very interesting situation, to say the least.

The outcome of much of this hinges on the cost of securing NBA rights, a crucial element in this entire equation. It’s unclear why WWE is doing this, because they did just get over an antitrust lawsuit. MLW just put them through a legal nightmare over unfair practices, and keeping them out of their own television deal.

WWE is also no longer prohibiting AEW from running certain venues. They are also speaking with Warner Bros Discovery about WWE RAW, and AEW already has shows on those networks. Needless to say, 2024 could be a very interesting year.

What’s your take on WWE’s next moves? Let us know what you think they should do about their TV rights deals in the comments section!