Dave Meltzer stuff

[cm funk]

I wonder if Wade or Dave think the fact that the Network is cheaper than their services will have an impact on them at all.

Alvarez talked about this on one of his audio shows. His basic take was that the WWE Network and WO/F4W are completely different products with a crossover audience. He didn't completely dismiss the idea of it costing them a few subscribers, but I agree with his take on it. He talked about how around WM time, the most expensive PPV of the year, they get their biggest spike in subscriptions and the most traffic on the website. It's the same with big UFC shows. He and Dave talked about it briefly on another show and were basically in agreement with Dave kinda like, "eh, it's possible. I doubt it, but you know, we'll see!"

 

I remember when Bryan raised the price from $9.95 or whatever it had been for a long time and so many people bitched loudly about it for a while....but it didn't seem to hurt their business at all. I think WWE priced themselves at $9.99 as an entry level price to attract people. I am 100% certain that once they've established a customer base that price will slowly increase and settle somewhere in the low teens. Bryan and Dave both had the same thought of they could have charged $14.99 and it would still be a good deal and the people who want it would get it, but were in agreement that this price point brings them the most customers while undercutting profit a bit. Dave always brings up re: ppv prices that higher prices have been more profitable to WWE and it never made sense for Vince to cut the price of shows rather than gradually increasing it.

[Zoo Enthusiast]

I was just curious, because I plan on dropping my Torch sub when the Network starts, and probably my Netflix one. Not because of price, but just time constraints. Actually will probably dial down my DirecTV package, as well. I sub to MLB.tv and will have The Network, so I don't have time for much else on my dish aside from watching my local baseball team's games. I already watch Raw on DVR and don't see that I'll have any incentive to start watching it live (as much as I do enjoy the show, I just can't enjoy it watching it for 3 + hours live).

 

I'll keep my Observer sub, though.

[rovert]

Scherer didn't seem to be worried if anything he was enthusiastic about. He talked about doing things like pushing archives of his Lariat newsletter and like linking to the issue of The Lariat to whatever ECW episode WWE puts up that week or whatever.

[goc]

EDIT: Wrong thread

[sek69]

I was just curious, because I plan on dropping my Torch sub when the Network starts, and probably my Netflix one. Not because of price, but just time constraints. Actually will probably dial down my DirecTV package, as well. I sub to MLB.tv and will have The Network, so I don't have time for much else on my dish aside from watching my local baseball team's games. I already watch Raw on DVR and don't see that I'll have any incentive to start watching it live (as much as I do enjoy the show, I just can't enjoy it watching it for 3 + hours live).

 

I'll keep my Observer sub, though.

 

Has anyone clarified if the Raw episodes uploaded on the Network are full or the edited ones that go on Hulu Plus now?

[Zoo Enthusiast]

I was just curious, because I plan on dropping my Torch sub when the Network starts, and probably my Netflix one. Not because of price, but just time constraints. Actually will probably dial down my DirecTV package, as well. I sub to MLB.tv and will have The Network, so I don't have time for much else on my dish aside from watching my local baseball team's games. I already watch Raw on DVR and don't see that I'll have any incentive to start watching it live (as much as I do enjoy the show, I just can't enjoy it watching it for 3 + hours live).

 

I'll keep my Observer sub, though.

 

Has anyone clarified if the Raw episodes uploaded on the Network are full or the edited ones that go on Hulu Plus now?

 

Not that I have seen. I'm planning on just continuing to DVR it on my DirecTV, most likely.

[David]

I was just curious, because I plan on dropping my Torch sub when the Network starts, and probably my Netflix one. Not because of price, but just time constraints. Actually will probably dial down my DirecTV package, as well. I sub to MLB.tv and will have The Network, so I don't have time for much else on my dish aside from watching my local baseball team's games. I already watch Raw on DVR and don't see that I'll have any incentive to start watching it live (as much as I do enjoy the show, I just can't enjoy it watching it for 3 + hours live).

 

I'll keep my Observer sub, though.

 

Has anyone clarified if the Raw episodes uploaded on the Network are full or the edited ones that go on Hulu Plus now?

 

Dave and Bryan have said it's believed that the new episodes will be the edited versions.

[jdw]

On that note.....I got reminded of why I dislike Wade Keller the other day. He mentioned on one of his blogtalk shows that he'd been invited to the WWE Network launch event a week before it happened. And he didn't go. What kind of self-respecting wrestling journalist wouldn't go to cover that?

I don't think Bix or Chris went either, but I think they were able to cover it. Since it was streamed and what not, it's not like one needed to be there to cover it. Modern world and what not.

 

That's setting side the quality of his coverage, which is a different thing. But honestly, what added benefit was there to fly out from the event to be there in person?

 

John

[jdw]

I wonder if Wade or Dave think the fact that the Network is cheaper than their services will have an impact on them at all.

Doubt they think it matters. They've covered wrestling for years when a massive amount of it was given away for free rather than being charged for:

 

4M people watch Raw

150K buy a typical PPV

 

The ratio won't be quite as extreme with the Network, but it will still be more people watching for free than paying for it.

 

Dave and Wade think they're in the "news" business rather than the "review" business. As long as there's new to cover, they think they have a niche.

 

Whether they're right or wrong? Scherer has worked for his own site for years, and does enough business that I believe MKJ works for it as well rather than having a fulltime job. If there's room for Dave, Wade, Bryan and Scherer... we're quite a ways away from all of them falling off.

 

John

[Bix]

On that note.....I got reminded of why I dislike Wade Keller the other day. He mentioned on one of his blogtalk shows that he'd been invited to the WWE Network launch event a week before it happened. And he didn't go. What kind of self-respecting wrestling journalist wouldn't go to cover that?

I don't think Bix or Chris went either, but I think they were able to cover it. Since it was streamed and what not, it's not like one needed to be there to cover it. Modern world and what not.

 

That's setting side the quality of his coverage, which is a different thing. But honestly, what added benefit was there to fly out from the event to be there in person?

 

I suspect Dave and Bryan only went because it was a fairly easy trip since they're on the west coast.

 

Make your own jokes about Scherer living in Vegas and not going. Mike Johnson was credentialed for the Performance Center opening, so...

 

But yes, from a practical perspective there wasn't much that Dave and Bryan got by being there in person that we didnt get on the stream.

[Bix]

On that note.....I got reminded of why I dislike Wade Keller the other day. He mentioned on one of his blogtalk shows that he'd been invited to the WWE Network launch event a week before it happened. And he didn't go. What kind of self-respecting wrestling journalist wouldn't go to cover that? And then he does a 20 minute or so "recap" of it based on watching it on youtube.....and he butchers a ton of the facts while bragging about how "I've been on top of this story the whole time....PW Elite members....this is why you subscribe". He goes so far as to compare the WWE Network to PW Elite in terms of structure and content, while bragging about how he's been around since 1987. What a complete ass. Also, the audio on his podcasts is shit. Whatever beef people have with Alvarez, he strives to excellence when it comes to audio quality....Keller might as well be some kid podcasting in his bedroom. Some of his shows are downright unlistenable

I thought the same thing. He and Powell were both kvetching on that show about how they were invited on such short notice... Even though everyone knew about the announcement for at least a month.

 

The fact is, no one was really all that "on top" of this deal, aside from Dave having some hints but nothing concrete. Or if you choose to believe WrestleZone actually had the facts.

 

I wonder if Wade or Dave think the fact that the Network is cheaper than their services will have an impact on them at all.

 

Wrestlezone DID actually have all the facts. I'm not sure what you're saying, it's not like they didn't show their hand.

 

I'm saying what Dave said on the Board - that they didn't really have anything different than he did.

 

Not trying to be completely dismissive of them.

 

Dave hadn't reported any of it yet, and when the next WON came out, he sourced it from WrestleZone. He treated it like something he was able to confirm but not report.

[jdw]

I suspect Dave and Bryan only went because it was a fairly easy trip since they're on the west coast.

Yep.

 

Make your own jokes about Scherer living in Vegas and not going. Mike Johnson was credentialed for the Performance Center opening, so...

 

 

But yes, from a practical perspective there wasn't much that Dave and Bryan got by being there in person that we didnt get on the stream.

I'm sure that Dave could get some stuff from talking to WWE folks there. In turn, I suspect Wade could have banged the phones to talk to his WWE sources.

 

If I were Dave living in the Bay, would I go? Sure... if nothing was going on with the family that would be impacted. Easy trip, easy to get in that day, and if you wanted to fly out that night it would have been easy enough to do.

 

If I were Wade in the Twin Cities? No way in hell would I fly out to Vegas in January on a week's notice. Booking a flight and a hotel to stay would suck. It's about a 3-3:30 non-stop, you're trying to do that both ways, and I don't think there's a non-stop red eye out of Vegas to Minny. So you're fucked into staying overnight in the middle of CES... flying into Vegas in the middle of CES... non-stops a week out are probably in the $800 range each way...

 

That's pretty fucked up for something you can just put your son to bed and fire up the laptop to watch the stream.

 

I can't knock Wade for not going. It's pretty useless from that part of the country, and given the event itself.

 

John

[Eduardo]

For whatever people think about Dana White re: media....he handles the media the way other sports do. UFC is not stingy about giving out press passes to people in the so called "MMA media". Vince will give a press pass to anyone in the "mainstream media" but the wrestling media? No way.

Gross. Hunt. Sherwood & Sherdog.com (banned in 2005-2009; then again in 2010-2012). Reporter from Home and Garden has credentials though.

[Bix]

For whatever people think about Dana White re: media....he handles the media the way other sports do. UFC is not stingy about giving out press passes to people in the so called "MMA media". Vince will give a press pass to anyone in the "mainstream media" but the wrestling media? No way.

Gross. Hunt. Sherwood & Sherdog.com (banned in 2005-2009; then again in 2010-2012). Reporter from Home and Garden has credentials though.

 

Two weeks later I still can't figure out what a reporter for HGTV actually does.

[Loss]

I'm sure that Dave could get some stuff from talking to WWE folks there. In turn, I suspect Wade could have banged the phones to talk to his WWE sources.

I'm not sure I believe that Wade has WWE sources anymore. He hasn't broken a news story himself in over a decade.

[evilclown]

For whatever people think about Dana White re: media....he handles the media the way other sports do. UFC is not stingy about giving out press passes to people in the so called "MMA media". Vince will give a press pass to anyone in the "mainstream media" but the wrestling media? No way.

Gross. Hunt. Sherwood & Sherdog.com (banned in 2005-2009; then again in 2010-2012). Reporter from Home and Garden has credentials though.

 

Not sure what was so confusing about them giving Home and Garden access. They were and are aggressively seeking out potential female fans, especially for Ronda's fights. HGTV is way more valuable towards that end than 100 MMA blog sites.

 

It's also increasingly difficult to get credentialed to a major UFC event. Most sites that do are big corporate site, with a few legacy holdovers from the old days.

[Wahoos Leg]

UFC only credentials approximately 10 outlets per show now.

[evilclown]

UFC only credentials approximately 10 outlets per show now.

That sounds low.

 

MMA Junkie/MMA Fighting/ESPN/SI/Bleacher Report/Fox/Globo/Yahoo I know are approved every time (minus Gross, Hunt). Often multiple people.

 

MMA Weekly/MMA Heat/Wrestling Observer/Sirius Radio/SportsNet are almost always approved.

 

Local paper/local alt paper/local TV and radio are always approved.

[mookeighana]

On that note.....I got reminded of why I dislike Wade Keller the other day. He mentioned on one of his blogtalk shows that he'd been invited to the WWE Network launch event a week before it happened. And he didn't go. What kind of self-respecting wrestling journalist wouldn't go to cover that?

I don't think Bix or Chris went either, but I think they were able to cover it. Since it was streamed and what not, it's not like one needed to be there to cover it. Modern world and what not.

 

That's setting side the quality of his coverage, which is a different thing. But honestly, what added benefit was there to fly out from the event to be there in person?

 

John

 

I would have loved to go; but it's not like I got an invitation. (I don't think WWE considers "self-publishing a Kickstarter book"/"blogger" as a legitimate news outlet) I would have really considered going too if that was a possibility since I was already travelling for work that week so I wouldn't have minded the timing.

 

I do think there's the possibility that there's some conversations with WWE folks that might have been there if you sniffed around enough, where you could ask one or two real questions. But I know both Dave & Bryan ended up just with the WWE Superstars and then a few minutes with Perkins (where the only real questions could have been answered). But as was pointed out, I haven't seen or heard very much that wasn't part of the Network launch presentation. About the only detail that I've heard from Dave that I hadn't seen confirmed in a press release, investor presentation, conference call, or Q&A was that WWE PPVs replays for shows like this years Elimination Chamber would have a several week blackout before they'd be available for on-demand selection.

 

Normally, I'd say that there's something you can learn when you're sitting with other professionals and talking about what you know, but in this case, based on Bryan's account - a lot of tech journalists were blindsided by the announcement, even though the strong outline of exactly what they were going to launch has been pretty darn clear for a month if you've been paying attention and reading the rumors.

[cheapshot]

In the past couple of weeks I have noticed Dave slightly losing his temper with Bryan. I'm surprised it's taken this long to be fair.

[sek69]

In the past couple of weeks I have noticed Dave slightly losing his temper with Bryan. I'm surprised it's taken this long to be fair.

 

I think he's getting irritated with having to answer the same network related questions a million times.

[Loss]

It's interesting that it seems like these days, he gets most of his information directly from the office when in the past, most of the information came from wrestlers. It makes Dave come across as a guy who has morphed into a beltway reporter in some ways. It would also explain the shift in his coverage. The modern Dave would talk about how the WCW midcard guys don't understand wrestling because Hogan is the clear draw. The old Dave would have complained more about Rock being on steroids and not having great matches when he returned.

[Steven]

I don't know. Hogan was a full timer that had hung around too long (before the heel turn) and end up changing the product almost completely while bringing in friends of his. Rock was always supposed to temporary thing to get more eyes watching TV. It's not like he was tagging with Vin Diesel.

[WrestlingPower]

On the latest Observer radio (and several recent ones actually) about The Network, Meltzer has mentioned all this old footage he probably has that WWE doesn't. Today he mentioned late 70s/early 80s Georgia. Has anyone tried to contact him with a serious offer to see what he has that he would be willing to let someone borrow/buy/etc. to attempt to get some of that into the trading community? I know there has been discussion over the years of what he may have but wondering if he even responds to these types of requests? Saying he has something but then blowing it off on ever going to the trouble of finding it & downplaying its quality/relevance, it's kind of like then why have it to just hoard it?

[sek69]

If you've ever seen Dave's collection, he has hundreds of unmarked tapes/dvds so it's probably a matter of it being a huge pain in the ass to even find anything let alone sell it/get it transferred to digital.