Netflix to stream WWE Raw in $6.7 billion bet on live events
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Netflix has lately been securing rights to live events as it seeks more profit opportunities.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LOS GATOS, California – Streaming pioneer Netflix took a big step into live events on Jan 23 with a more than US$5 billion (S$6.7 billion) rights deal that would make it the exclusive home of World Wrestling Entertainment’s Raw from January 2025.
The 10-year partnership will see Raw on the streaming platform in the United States, Canada, Britain and Latin America, among other territories, the companies said.
Netflix will also exclusively telecast outside the US all WWE shows and specials, including SmackDown, as well as pay-per-view live events such as WrestleMania and Royal Rumble.
Netflix has, in recent years, been keen on live events. It secured rights to a tennis face-off between Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz in December and streamed a celebrity golf tournament in November featuring Formula One drivers and golfers.
The deal marks a major shift for WWE as Raw, which debuted in 1993 and has 1,600 episodes, leaves linear television for the first time since its inception.
WWE merged with UFC parent Endeavour Group to form TKO Group Holdings in a deal valued at US$21 billion in 2023, forming one of the biggest names in wrestling and entertainment. REUTERS
