By Jess Jones
Netflix has agreed a $5bn deal to screen World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) flagship weekly programme Raw as the company pushes further into livestreaming.
Starting January 2025, as part of a 10-year agreement, Netflix will exclusively stream Raw every week in a number of locations including the UK, US, Canada and Latin America.
Under the deal, Netflix will also own the rights to stream all WWE programmes outside the US, including SmackDown and WrestleMania.
“This deal is transformative,” said Mark Shapiro, president and chief operating officer of TKO, the group that WWE is part of. “It marries the can’t-miss WWE product with Netflix’s extraordinary global reach and locks in significant and predictable economics for many years,” he added.
He also said Netflix could look to develop WWE documentaries to grow the sport’s appeal.
The deal, however, will pose a headache for USA Network, where Raw is currently the top show and brings in 17.5m viewers a year.
Netflix is currently exploring ways to expand its offering, and is keen to push into livestreaming. While the move could throw up technical challenges for the company, Shapiro remains confident.
“We’ve got an entire year to make sure we’ve got it right,” he said.
At the time of reporting, Netflix shares were up 0.6 per cent. Netflix is set to report itsfourth quarter results after the closing bell today.
