Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) stock started Tuesday trading higher, up 1.9%, as news of a content streaming partnership with WWE boosted investor sentiments ahead of this afternoon’s earnings report.
The online streamer will broadcast the three-hour weekly WWE Raw show every Monday night, starting in 2025, securing hundreds of hours of premium content every year.
It is described as a 10-year, $5 billion deal.
TKO Group Holdings Inc (NYSE:TKO), parent company to WWE and UFC, today saw its stock soar around 20% higher - and it separately also inked a deal with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.
Raw has run for 31 years, amassing more than 1,600 episodes, and according to recent statistics, attracted 17.5 million viewers on the USA Network.
Early adopter meets streaming pioneer
WWE was an early adopter of video streaming, with its WWE subscription services being in place for several years, significantly, however the show was until this deal always broadcast first on linear TV networks – before shows were uploaded to an online archive weeks later following a ‘blackout’ period.
Netflix will now be the sole broadcaster of Raw, WWE’s premier weekly show, across all the entertainment brand’s top territories including US, Canada, UK, and Latin America.
The streaming platform will also, according to the statement, non-exclusively stream other WWE branded shows and premium live events (PLEs) such as WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Royal Rumble.
NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming platform, meanwhile, retains rights to the PLEs in the US under a five-year deal that began in 2021.
In New York, Netflix investors saw the stock gain 1.9% in early deals before the excitement was tempered somewhat ahead of this afternoon’s earnings release – after 20 minutes of the session, the shares were up $4.87, or 0.96%, changing hands at $490.36.
“We are excited to have WWE Raw, with its huge and passionate multigenerational fan base, on Netflix,” said chief content officer Bela Bajaria.
“By combining our reach, recommendations, and fandom with WWE, we’ll be able to deliver more joy and value for their audiences and our members.
“Raw is the best of sports entertainment, blending great characters and storytelling with live action 52 weeks a year and we’re thrilled to be in this long-term partnership with WWE.”
Nick Khan, WWE president, meanwhile, commented: “Netflix has engineered a phenomenal track record for storytelling.
“We believe Netflix, as one of the world’s leading entertainment brands, is the ideal long-term home for Raw’s live, loyal, and ever-growing fan base."
Mark Shapiro, chief operating officer of WWE and UFC parent company TKO, described the content tie-up as “transformative”.
“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 said.
“Our partnership fundamentally alters and strengthens the media landscape, dramatically expands the reach of WWE, and brings weekly live appointment viewing to Netflix.”
'The Rock' comes back to WWE
The Netflix news followed the day's earlier announcement, that WWE and UFC parent TKO had hired Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson to join its board, for a $30 million stock package.
The wrestler-turned-movie-star-turned-entrepreneur also secured control of 'The Rock' intellectual property rights from the sports entertainment company.
It adds to Johnson’s burgeoning business portfolio which also includes a lucrative co-branded partnership with Under Armour along with the Teremana tequila brand, the ZOA energy drink brand, and his TV and movie production company 7 Bucks Productions.
The pair of bullish news announcements helped TKO stock soar some $15.44 or 19.95% higher to trade at $92.79.