Tony Khan Disappointed with TV Deal Offered By Warner Bros Discovery

Under Tony Khan’s leadership, AEW has forged a notable partnership with Warner Bros Discovery for programming. Khan has played a hands-on role in ensuring that AEW’s content aligns with the standards set by Warner Bros Discovery. This collaboration has sparked speculation about the possibility of a media rights deal between the two entities. Interestingly enough, it appears Khan is disappointed with the TV deal offered by Warner Bros Discovery.

Warner Bros Discovery has proudly served as the home of All Elite Wrestling, airing popular shows such as Dynamite, Rampage, and Collision. The exclusive partnership between AEW and Warner Bros Discovery has been so significant that it led to the discontinuation of AEW Dark on YouTube.

Khan previously confirmed that AEW would begin serious negotiations with Warner Bros Discovery and he revealed that the exclusive negotiation window would come to an end soon as well.

According to a report by Matthew Belloni of Puck News, WBD CEO David Zaslav and TNT Sports head Luis Silberwasser are keen to retain the five hours of AEW programming per week on TNT and TBS.

However, the exclusive negotiating window is set to close in July, and Tony Khan is disappointed with the current offer. It was noted that Khan is likely aware that if WBD loses the NBA, AEW could gain more leverage in negotiations, despite the significantly smaller financial scale of the AEW deal compared to the NBA. If the window closes without an agreement, other entities, such as Comcast, could potentially bid for the rights, adding complexity to the situation given WBD’s stake in the NBA.

”I’m told the exclusive window closes in July, and AEW leader Tony Khan is said to be disappointed with the offer currently on the table. Khan also surely knows that Zaz losing the NBA would give AEW more leverage, even though the money to re-up AEW is a mere drop in the NBA bucket. If the window closes without a deal, others could swoop in for those rights, as Comcast has done with the NBA. (Extra awkward because WBD is said to own a stake in the league.)”

Belloni added that the attractiveness of AEW to another platform remains uncertain, especially since only non-WWE partners could place bids. Nevertheless, AEW’s programming performs reliably on the Turner networks, and a competing suitor could further complicate Zaslav’s cable carriage negotiations.

As talks advance, the timing of AEW and Warner Bros Discovery’s agreement remains uncertain. Nonetheless, clinching a deal with Warner Bros Discovery would be a noteworthy milestone for Tony Khan’s company, but there’s no guarantee that will happen in the end.

Are you worried for AEW’s current progress in their deal with Warner Bros Discovery? Let us know in the comments!