With YouTube doling out $100 million to content partners to create original programming for the site, many producers who landed that coin are still trying to figure out what to do with their new online real estate.
For WWE, the answer was simple: Use the WWE FanNation channel as a marketing tool to drive viewers back to its weekly TV shows and year-round slate of pay-per-views, while also building traffic for its own website, sales of toys, videogames, magazines and other merchandise.
In February, the company launched an initial slate of nine Web series featuring its talent. Shows like "WWE Inbox" and "Outside the Ring" have its wrestlers answer fan questions or reveal what their lives are like on the road. In "WWE Download," Dolph Ziggler sarcastically comments on YouTube videos, while "Foreign Exchange," is a comedic look at WWE hosted by Santino Morella.
"It's another outlet for our superstars, where they can further develop their on-air personalities," said WWE's chief marketing officer Michelle Wilson. At the same time, it "gives fans a different view of what happens backstage and lets them get to know our superstars better with a sense of humor."
YouTube already is seeing the amount of time users spend watching video on its sites growing considerably. In February, when WWE launched its channel, viewership rose 60% on YouTube, according to comScore, and channel subscriptions are up at least 50% since December...More?
source: variety.com
March 30, 2012
WWE Tubthumps TV Via YouTube
This Day in Wrestling History
Triple H kicks Shawn Michaels out of D-Generation X and becomes the leader of the group. Later that night X-Pac, Billy Gunn and Road Dogg join DX with Triple H and Chyna.
March 30, 1998
March 29, 2012
This Day in Wrestling History - 93,173 Fans at WMIII
WrestleMania III sets an attendance record of 93,173 at the The Pontiac SilverDome.
March 29, 1987
Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant - "The irresistible force meets the immovable object" - Gorilla Monsoon
March 28, 2012
Kevin Nash Explains Why Triple H Beating Undertaker At WM28 Would Be Bad For Business
Kevin Nash told the UK Sun the following about why Triple H ending the Undertaker's streak at WrestleMania 28 this Sunday would be a bad idea.
"End of an Era…I've been thinking about the "speaking in code" that Shawn Michaels alluded to last week…If the WWE did have HHH end the Streak, what's the bragging point since it took him three tries? There's no bragging point, and it doesn't do anything for business…It wouldn't be good for business at all. It'd be like, yeah HHH ended it, but it took him three tries...Big deal. How does that impact the business to the good side?
"Most people would automatically point to the fact that he's married to Stephanie, and didn't do it because he deserved it…They could see through the facade WWE [would] have to build for it. I could already hear the bullshit chants from the more seasoned fans if they did that.
"In all honesty, at this point in time, the only one that deserves to end the Streak, is Taker himself by hanging it up when he chooses…In other words, he retires undefeated at Mania."
WWE Forging Ahead with Cable Network Plan
WWE continues to grapple with the challenge of developing its own cable television network, and the Stamford-based company says it is making headway toward entering a contract with a distributor.
"There will be a WWE network in some shape or form. We are in late-stage negotiations with distributors," said Michelle Wilson, chief marketing officer at WWE. "Getting a distribution agreement for a cable network is not easy."
She said the situation is far better than the one presented by the New York Post, which reported earlier this month that the company is behind schedule in its plans to launch the network on April 1, timed to coincide with Wrestlemania XXVIII in Miami.
There never was a deadline, according to Wilson, who said the company is hiring staff to operate the network.
"We've filled 30 positions so far specifically for the network. They come with cable experience at ESPN, Viacom, Discovery and Warner Brothers TV," said Wilson, who anticipates that up to 120 new employees will eventually be hired for the new network.
They have been busy producing and preparing programming, Wilson said, declining to predict when the new network will air.
Ricky Steamboat Comments on FCW Talent that are Ready to be Called Up
"I believe Seth Rollins and Bo Rotundo are ready for a look-see. I think Husky [Harris], who is Bo's brother is ready for a look. A guy who has been with us for about six months in Antonio Cesaro is ready for a look. Not knowing his background, I find he has been doing this for a while. He is ready. I think my son is ready for a look. Every quarter collectively, all the trainers give a report on all the talent that is sent up to WWE for them to look at."
Linda McMahon to attend WrestleMania
Linda McMahon is putting the Republican nominating race for U.S. Senate against Shays on hold this weekend so she can attend to, ahem, a family matter.
McMahon's campaign confirmed that the entertainment mogul turned two-time Senate candidate is heading to South Florida Sunday for WrestleMania XXVIII, where her son-in-law, Paul Levesque, better known as "Triple H," will be pitted against the Undertaker in a steel cage match that is one of the headline bouts of what many consider to be the Super Bowl of wrestling.
McMahon, who turned over the reins as chief executive officer of WWE to her husband, Vince, two years ago to run for Senate, was not immediately available for comment Monday.
Her attendance at WrestleMania could pose a somewhat unique challenge for her campaign, which has marketed McMahon as a visionary in the male-dominated corporate world, but has used the WWE brand sparingly, seemingly in an attempt to keep female voters in the fold...More?
source: newstimes.com
