WWE Netflix/Peacock/ESPN Discussion Thread

[SmashMan]

An update from CNBC Sport on access for those of us with cable/streaming providers:

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/07/cnbc...s-upon-us.html

I wrote about this already once, way back in March. At the time, I explained the main point of puzzlement will be that pay TV subscribers who already get ESPN will receive the direct-to-consumer application for free. They won’t need to spend $29.99 per month extra for it.

This point came to a head with the WWE announcement on Wednesday. Professional wrestling fans want to know – if I subscribe to ESPN, do I also need to pay $29.99 per month for the streaming service? Will I need to pay more money, like the old pay-per-view model? Will I get the premium events with ESPN+, the existing, less expensive add-on app that will remain after the flagship debut?

Anyone who currently pays for a bundle of TV networks that includes ESPN will eventually get ESPN’s direct-to-consumer service for no extra charge. You’ll download (or click on) the ESPN application on your mobile device or smart TV. There will be a login screen that asks you if you’re a pay TV subscriber. You’ll then be able to authenticate that you do, in fact, pay for traditional pay TV and get ESPN in your bundle.

Now comes the new stuff – and the confusing part: I’m told not every pay-TV provider will be listed on Aug. 21, when the application launches. That’s because ESPN doesn’t have up-to-date carriage agreements with all of the largest pay TV providers. These deals are staggered over multiple years. Some have happened recently, others haven’t.

So, here’s what I can tell you: Disney has been able to get authentication rights from Charter, DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, Verizon Fios and some smaller pay TV operators.

That means ESPN’s direct-to-consumer product will not initially be available for Comcast Xfinity customers, YouTube TV subscribers, Dish satellite TV customers, Sling TV users or Cox cable subscribers.

Hopefully they get those new deals worked out before WWE starts.

[UFCMPunk]

Peacock raising their prices to ridiculous levels. From Twitter, good thing I cancel my original account and bought a holiday deal(X Amount for 1 year) on a new account thinking I wouldn't need it after 2025. A VPN is cheaper than this.

Peacock will be increasing subscription prices:
• Premium increasing from $7.99 to $10.99 a month
• Premium Plus increasing from $13.99 to $16.99 a month
• Premium annual increasing from $79.99 to $109.99
• Premium Plus annual increasing from $139.99 to $169.99

[Majingir]

An update from CNBC Sport on access for those of us with cable/streaming providers:

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/07/cnbc...s-upon-us.html







Hopefully they get those new deals worked out before WWE starts.

The first half is how I expected it, which is similar to how other tv provider subscriptions work (unless its different in the us), where you just log in with your tv providers account and as long as certain channels are part of your package, you also have access to their services.

But the 2nd half, isn't that more common in the US than other countries, where certain providers might withhold services based on specific deals?

Not really a wwe or espn issue as much as it's an issue with the provider. But there will be more urgency (and especially with wrestling fans, more complaints) if people won't get access to WWE because of the provider.

[SmashMan]

Logging in to apps with your cable/streaming info works the same way here, yeah.

The second part just sounds like ESPN didn’t have their streaming service in mind the last time they made deals with some of the TV providers, so they have to go back and figure that out. Less about withholding any services and more that the last time they made deals with Xfinity, YouTube, Dish, etc, their new streaming service wasn’t close enough to release to bother including it in those deals.

[UFCMPunk]

So I only got to see like 5 minutes of Smackdown in Saudi before a camel decided to eat the cable feed lol. Does Smackdown and NXT on International Netflix have the same interviews and promos where the commercials would normally be like RAW?

[dubcity]

Peacock raising their prices to ridiculous levels. From Twitter, good thing I cancel my original account and bought a holiday deal(X Amount for 1 year) on a new account thinking I wouldn't need it after 2025. A VPN is cheaper than this.

Peacock will be increasing subscription prices:
• Premium increasing from $7.99 to $10.99 a month
• Premium Plus increasing from $13.99 to $16.99 a month
• Premium annual increasing from $79.99 to $109.99
• Premium Plus annual increasing from $139.99 to $169.99

Yeah, this is insane. The ad-free version is just not worth the money, and paying $10.99 for the ad supported tier just feels wrong. I feel like I saw this coming years ago tho. At some point these streaming services realized they effed up by focusing on a pay-for-no-ads model, because the advertising just brings in so much more money. So now they are trying to price people out of the ad-free tiers. Now people are basically paying the price they used to pay for ad-free for the pleasure of watching commercials again.

And this wild UFC deal that Paramount made today is yet another big moment in this streaming arms race. Everyone is acquiring assets, and the result is the prices for these services will be going up to a crazy exponential degree.

[UFCMPunk]

I just finished Unreal, and it's hilarious watching Travis Scott tell Hunter how hyped he was to be apart of it then he said nah months later lol.

To me, the Travis spot isn't even that bad if you remove the unnecessary entrance and just have him come from the crowd to pull the ref out. It go so much hate due to the entrance music playing, him slowly walking down the ramp. Sure, people would still hate Travis' involvement but not to the extent we all do currently.

[Majingir]

I just finished Unreal, and it's hilarious watching Travis Scott tell Hunter how hyped he was to be apart of it then he said nah months later lol.

To me, the Travis spot isn't even that bad if you remove the unnecessary entrance and just have him come from the crowd to pull the ref out. It go so much hate due to the entrance music playing, him slowly walking down the ramp. Sure, people would still hate Travis' involvement but not to the extent we all do currently.

I think he just didn't realize what he was getting in to.

He probably just thought he'd be doing some fun quick tv appearances, but didn't realize in order to do it he'd really have to commit long term and put in extra work and travel.

[Majingir]

ESPN deal kicks in way sooner.

Sounds like WWE hit their contractually obligated number of PLEs on Peacock, so now ESPN gets all? PLEs starting from September.

https://www.nbcsports.com/pressbox/press-releases/peacock-and-wwe-agree-to-multi-year-partnership-to-exclusively-live-stream-iconic-saturday-nights-main-event-series

And this confirms Cenas retirement match on NBC/Peacock for SNME.

It better be the only match and they give all the time needed. Sucks that with ads were gonna miss half the match, and then could have the post match moments just cut off by the hard tv outs.

[SmashMan]

Yeah, I’ll be finding random streams for PLEs after Clash until ESPN works out a streaming deal with Comcast. **** signing up for another subscription.

[UFCMPunk]

ESPN deal kicks in way sooner.

Sounds like WWE hit their contractually obligated number of PLEs on Peacock, so now ESPN gets all? PLEs starting from September.

https://www.nbcsports.com/pressbox/press-releases/peacock-and-wwe-agree-to-multi-year-partnership-to-exclusively-live-stream-iconic-saturday-nights-main-event-series

And this confirms Cenas retirement match on NBC/Peacock for SNME.

It better be the only match and they give all the time needed. Sucks that with ads were gonna miss half the match, and then could have the post match moments just cut off by the hard tv outs.

Seems to me WWE had the deal with ESPN in the works and wanted to get to ESPN ASAP so they bombarded us with PLEs throughout the summer in order to reach the contractually obligated number of PLEs on Peacock. Thus explains why we got so many damn PLEs in a short time period and why Wrestlepalooza was added as to be the kickoff for the ESPN launch next month.

Cena's retirement match will officially happen on Peacock so no worries about hard cut off times or anything. Poor Goldberg lol. It's interesting they said a Saturday Night's Main Event will also take place November 1st. So 1 in November then December with Cena's final match. Time to start looking into hotels for Boston the weekend of December 13th, I'm going to go to Cena's last match.

[Majingir]

Seems to me WWE had the deal with ESPN in the works and wanted to get to ESPN ASAP so they bombarded us with PLEs throughout the summer in order to reach the contractually obligated number of PLEs on Peacock. Thus explains why we got so many damn PLEs in a short time period and why Wrestlepalooza was added as to be the kickoff for the ESPN launch next month.

Cena's retirement match will officially happen on Peacock so no worries about hard cut off times or anything. Poor Goldberg lol. It's interesting they said a Saturday Night's Main Event will also take place November 1st. So 1 in November then December with Cena's final match. Time to start looking into hotels for Boston the weekend of December 13th, I'm going to go to Cena's last match.

I thought SNME would be an NBC thing, but if it's Peacock special, imo that loses some of the appeal.

Wasn't the appeal of SNME the fact that it was on an easily available network (at least back when it first sarted). Only on Peacock basically just means it's a PLE.

They probably want to rush to ESPN as well since it's the start of the (non MLB) sports season so take advantage of getting wwe ads for ESPN ASAP.

ESPN doesn't impact international viewers which I like, but SNME on Peacock only means I can't watch it on NBC like I used to. I hate watching anything wwe on YouTube because of the ads. I have ad blocks on my computer, but streaming on my tv through my phone or app on my tv doesn't block the ads. Don't get how YouTube has ads even on live broadcasts (I mean the forced ones, not the wwe inserted ones)

[SmashMan]

I thought SNME would be an NBC thing, but if it's Peacock special, imo that loses some of the appeal.

Wasn't the appeal of SNME the fact that it was on an easily available network (at least back when it first sarted). Only on Peacock basically just means it's a PLE.

Yeah. When it started, there was a novelty to it. I'd say even them bringing it back in 2006 had some of that because it'd been so long. Now? They have so much content spread across so many channels and services that there's nothing special about SNME. The ratings probably sucked too so NBC doesn't mind making it a Peacock-exclusive.

[SmashMan]

Another random deep cut from the WWE Vault: John Cena vs Kurt Angle vs JBL, with special ref Steve Austin

[Majingir]

Now getting around to Unreal Episode 2.

Was that an actual real moment with Jey and the security guard? I thought the guy was joking for a second (when he knew the names like Mark Henry and Tully Blanchard on his list) but he was serious in not letting Jey through (and Jey Uso wasn't on the sheet?)


But it was funny when they're asked what does "Uce" mean and Jimmy's like "I don't even know half these people's names, I just go around backstage calling everyone Uce". Every workplace has THAT GUY who calls everyone "my friend" or "buddy" or "boss" because they don't know anyone's names.

HHH telling Steph the I Show Speed rumble plan about how Tozawa is gonna get taken out and Speed replaces him, and Tozawa is just standing there next to them listening in on it all. I know he knows the plan already, but it seemed funny having him there probably like "wait, what's gonna happen to me?"

Might have been mentioned on here already, but that editing job on the rumble from that other cam they had was so cool. You piece together parts of the match and made it look like a continuous single camera shot.

I know people don't like pulling the curtains back too much, but I thought this series isn't a 100% pull the curtain back thing but it does still show you behind the scenes while still showing the actual in front of the fans side of things at the same time. I thought this would just be a writers room type of show but it just feels like a deeper dive in to the WWE24 doc they used to do.

[Majingir]

Unreal Episode 3:
Still mad that they blew such a huge opportunity to have Chelsea compete in Vancouver on a major PLE! Sure, she won the US title on Long Island, but she had family at that show and would've been the biggest cheers of the night!

She's really smart about the business though. She doesn't fully care about wins or losses or looking good, her job is being the best role player possible, which some take as an insult, but she's taken the ball and owned it and has thrived better than most in any role.

Episode 4:
I knew Rock and Nick Khan were close, but didn't know they knew each other for almost 40 years and it goes back to Rock's time in Hawaii.

He blames "weak Canadian economy" for why ticket sales were poor? No, ticket sales were poor because you charged people $200 for the nosebleeds where all you can see from up there is the tron! Jays won't even charge that much for those seats for the playoffs and that's with a much better view of the action.

There was a plan for KO to win the title from Cody at EC? That feels so random. But would it then just be KO vs Orton for the title at WM where Orton wins and eventually we get Orton vs Cena for the title where Cena gets #17 (maybe at Summerslam)? Or how would things have changed since KO ended up getting surgery. He'd win the title but they find out weeks later he needs surgery and now the WM title match doesn't happen anymore?