WWE (NYSE: WWE) and Discovery today announced a new multi-year
agreement in Italy beginning Wednesday, July 1 that will make WWE’s
weekly flagship programming available exclusively live and
on-demand with original U.S. commentary on DPlay PLUS, the OTT
premium pay service of Discovery, along with versions featuring
Italian commentary on DMAX (Channel 52).
This press release features multimedia. View
the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200624005239/en/
Every week, Dplay PLUS will exclusively air Monday Night Raw®
and Friday Night SmackDown® live, captivating fans with a unique
combination of edge-of-your-seat action, unpredictable drama and
world-class athleticism. NXT® will be available on-demand via Dplay
PLUS every Thursday morning.
WWE fans can also enjoy Raw, SmackDown and NXT with Italian
commentary by Luca Franchini and Michele Posa on Discovery’s
free-to-air channel, DMAX. A two-hour version of Raw will premiere
on Mondays starting July 13 at 11:15 pm and re-run at 10:30 am on
Saturdays; SmackDown will air at 11:15 pm on Tuesdays and re-run at
10:30 am on Sundays; NXT will air at 12:30 pm on Saturdays and
re-run at 9:30 am on Sundays.
WWE programming will launch on Dplay PLUS on Wednesday, July 1
with the latest episode of Raw available on-demand from Wednesday,
July 1 and SmackDown available from Saturday, July 4 straight after
airing live in the US.
“We are thrilled to embark on a new chapter for WWE in Italy as
we bring our unique blend of action-packed, family-friendly sports
entertainment to Discovery’s free-to-air and premium channels,”
said Stefan Kastenmüller, WWE Senior Vice President & Group
General Manager. “We are excited that our relationship with
Discovery is enhancing the fan experience in Italy with both
primetime and family-friendly timeslots.”
"We are pleased to announce this agreement with WWE, which is of
strategic importance for our group, and will allow us to offer our
audience a unique and innovative content proposition: premium
content on Dplay PLUS at a very competitive price and WWE
highlights on free-to-air on DMAX,” said Alessandro Araimo,
Managing Director Discovery Italy. “WWE has conquered a very wide
audience and we are confident that our channels and platforms can
help to further expand the very large Italian fanbase."
Raw, SmackDown and NXT with Italian commentary will also be
available on-demand via Dplay. WWE’s two popular weekly recap
series, Bottom Line and Afterburn, will be available with original
commentary from Dplay PLUS.
The agreement with WWE will make the Dplay PLUS premium content
offer even more exclusive with the platform subscription price
unchanged at 3.99 euros per month, and at the same time, enriching
the free-to-air offer of DMAX, which is already the home of rugby
and esports.
WWE’s monthly pay-per-view events, including WrestleMania® and
SummerSlam®, will stream exclusively on WWE Network in Italy.
About Discovery Italy
Discovery Italy is the leading broadcaster in real-life
entertainment with a multiplatform portfolio of 13 channels and the
OTT services Dplay, Eurosport Player and GOLFTV. Our 9 free-to-air
channels (NOVE, Real Time, DMAX, Giallo, MOTOR TREND, Food Network,
HGTV – Home & Garden TV, K2 and Frisbee) and four pay channels
(Discovery Channel, Discovery Science, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2
available on Sky) reach an overall share of 7%. From January 2017
Eurosport is officially the Home of the Olympics in Europe. In
Italy, Discovery has consolidated its position thanks to ability to
create a unique and integrated ecosystem, with multiplatform brands
that represent a destination for a dynamic audience, for talents
and for partners looking for a relevant and innovative media
stakeholder.
About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated
media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment.
The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and
deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE
is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television
programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms.
WWE’s TV-PG, family-friendly programming can be seen in more than
800 million homes worldwide in 28 languages. WWE Network, the
first-ever 24/7 over-the-top premium network that includes all live
pay-per-views, scheduled programming and a massive video-on-demand
library, is currently available in more than 180 countries. The
company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New
York, Los Angeles, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Shanghai,
Singapore, Dubai, Munich and Tokyo.
Additional information on WWE (NYSE: WWE) can be found at
wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global
activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.
About WWE Network
WWE Network is WWE’s award-winning digital streaming service
featuring every live WWE pay-per-view, original programming and
more than 11,000 hours of video on demand. Available anywhere,
anytime on any device, WWE Network can be accessed on TVs, gaming
consoles, mobile phones, tablets and computers.
Trademarks: All WWE programming,
talent names, images, likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves,
trademarks, logos and copyrights are the exclusive property of WWE
and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights
are the property of their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statements: This
press release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the
safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These
risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks relating
to: the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on our business, results of
operations and financial condition; entering, maintaining and
renewing major distribution agreements; a rapidly evolving media
landscape; WWE Network (including the risk that we are unable to
attract, retain and renew subscribers); our need to continue to
develop creative and entertaining programs and events; the
possibility of a decline in the popularity of our brand of sports
entertainment; the continued importance of key performers and the
services of Vincent K. McMahon; possible adverse changes in the
regulatory atmosphere and related private sector initiatives; the
highly competitive, rapidly changing and increasingly fragmented
nature of the markets in which we operate and greater financial
resources or marketplace presence of many of our competitors;
uncertainties associated with international markets including
possible disruptions and reputational risks; our difficulty or
inability to promote and conduct our live events and/or other
businesses if we do not comply with applicable regulations; our
dependence on our intellectual property rights, our need to protect
those rights, and the risks of our infringement of others’
intellectual property rights; the complexity of our rights
agreements across distribution mechanisms and geographical areas;
potential substantial liability in the event of accidents or
injuries occurring during our physically demanding events including
without limitation, claims alleging traumatic brain injury; large
public events as well as travel to and from such events; our
feature film business; our expansion into new or complementary
businesses and/or strategic investments; our computer systems and
online operations; privacy norms and regulations; a possible
decline in general economic conditions and disruption in financial
markets; our accounts receivable; our indebtedness including our
convertible notes; litigation; our potential failure to meet market
expectations for our financial performance, which could adversely
affect our stock; Vincent K. McMahon exercises control over our
affairs, and his interests may conflict with the holders of our
Class A common stock; a substantial number of shares are eligible
for sale by the McMahons and the sale, or the perception of
possible sales, of those shares could lower our stock price; and
the volatility of our Class A common stock. In addition, our
dividend is dependent on a number of factors, including, among
other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow,
strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital), our
financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions
on the payment of dividends (including under our revolving credit
facility), general economic and competitive conditions and such
other factors as our Board of Directors may consider relevant.
Forward-looking statements made by the Company speak only as of the
date made and are subject to change without any obligation on the
part of the Company to update or revise them. Undue reliance should
not be placed on these statements. For more information about risks
and uncertainties associated with the Company’s business, please
refer to the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors” sections of
the Company’s SEC filings, including, but not limited to, our
annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200624005239/en/
Media Contact: Dan Humphreys
+44 (0) 7860 847 622 Dan.Humphreys@wwecorp.com
Media Contact Discovery:
Adriano Baioni Adriano_baioni@discovery.com
Daniela Capra Daniela_capra@discovery.com
Investor Contact: Michael
Weitz 203-352-8642 Michael.Weitz@wwecorp.com
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