So at my house, we got MTS and i was browsing the channels and came to channel 1528 and low and behold, wwe network free preview. Pretty cool stuff, went to parents house, they have shaw and switched it to 225 and low and behold, wwe network but no free preview. My dad told me it's because Shaw are A holes but yeah.. Anyone gonna get this channel? I'm thinking about it, 11.99 a month, lots of footage, archived stuff, get to watch NXT, lots of history on that channel it seems, plus pay per views are included in that 11.99 a month. Say what you will but if a fan of wrestling, 11.99 for all that stuff plus a pay per view which goes for like 50 or more bucks on ppv, Not a bad deal is it? 

 

 

And Wrestlemania is coming up this Sunday too, not sure how many wrestling fans there are here but anyone gonna check it out? I haven't watched as religiously as i have in the past but do enjoy me the big 4, gonna say 3 cuz survivor series has sucked recently but do enjoy watching the big 3 PPV's (rumble,mania,summerslam)

 

and hell, it's only gonna cost 11.99 this time i think. Instead of the 50 bucks, Gotta make that decision to order the network soon i think, unless the free preview on MTS is all this month. 

If you're a wrestling fan it seems like a no brainer. Go for it!

Still seems a little pricey to me. I'm like you in that I generally only watch the big PPVs. But I also usually share the costs of those with other people. If that is not an option for you then 11.99 is not so bad. I would probably also watch the other PPVs if I had the WWE network so as long as you watch those you are getting your money's worth. I'd also like to see more NXT so that would be a bonus. If it was like 5.99, I would be all over it.

I run a local promotion so I'm a fan!

The Canadian Network is a good news/bad news story. Rogers customers get the terrestrial channel plus Over The Top access to the U.S. archives. In Manitoba we only get the channel so the only archival content we get is what's playing on the channel. It's actually better than I thought though.

In the US they have to watch the live programming OTT so they risk streaming and buffering issues. We have no such problems.

I run a local promotion so I'm a fan!

The Canadian Network is a good news/bad news story. Rogers customers get the terrestrial channel plus Over The Top access to the U.S. archives. In Manitoba we only get the channel so the only archival content we get is what's playing on the channel. It's actually better than I thought though.

In the US they have to watch the live programming OTT so they risk streaming and buffering issues. We have no such problems.

 

Which promotion? Might as well give it a plug while we're on the subject! I've been meaning to get out to some local shows but I've had other stuff going on every time there's a show I want to see.

 

Haven't followed the WWF/E for a while now. Got a little tired of the product they were putting out shortly after the Invasion angle and haven't really been able to get back into it. Recently I've just been reliving the late 90's through torrents and whatnot. That being said, I try to watch Wrestlemania and maybe the Rumble each year just to keep tabs on what's going on.

What bugs me is Americans pay $9.99 & we pay $11.99.I know it's only a toonie but we're always getting shafted. Just for that alone I refuse to buy it. 

 

I run a local promotion so I'm a fan!

The Canadian Network is a good news/bad news story. Rogers customers get the terrestrial channel plus Over The Top access to the U.S. archives. In Manitoba we only get the channel so the only archival content we get is what's playing on the channel. It's actually better than I thought though.

In the US they have to watch the live programming OTT so they risk streaming and buffering issues. We have no such problems.

 

Which promotion? Might as well give it a plug while we're on the subject! I've been meaning to get out to some local shows but I've had other stuff going on every time there's a show I want to see.

 

Haven't followed the WWF/E for a while now. Got a little tired of the product they were putting out shortly after the Invasion angle and haven't really been able to get back into it. Recently I've just been reliving the late 90's through torrents and whatnot. That being said, I try to watch Wrestlemania and maybe the Rumble each year just to keep tabs on what's going on.

 

I run Premier Championship Wrestling, Kenny Omega's home promotion.  Next show is Saturday April 18th at Doubles.  Anyone from the board that wants to give it a shot, let me know and Ill be happy to provide comps. Kenny wont be in town for the 18th but it will be a fun show anyway.

 

Im like you - I watch Rumble and WrestleMania and thats about it.

What time is the show at?

What time is the show at?

9pm.  There is a food menu and full bar.

 

@PCWlegacy on twitter, I will have more updates and things closer to the show.

 

Oh and adults only at this venue as they have VLT's in the room.  Security *will* ID you.

What bugs me is Americans pay $9.99 & we pay $11.99.I know it's only a toonie but we're always getting shafted. Just for that alone I refuse to buy it. 

Given the exchange rate, it's not bad.  But since we get less than half what the Americans do, it's not really a "fair" price.  But since I have routinely paid $60+ for WM in the past, and have already watched several shows since last week, it's been money well spent thus far.

 

Also, anything that saves me from having to go to Pony Corral to watch is a huge bonus.  That place drives me crazy.

So at my house, we got MTS and i was browsing the channels and came to channel 1528 and low and behold, wwe network free preview. Pretty cool stuff, went to parents house, they have shaw and switched it to 225 and low and behold, wwe network but no free preview.

My box just says Not Authorized. Maybe they don't have a signal yet and just have a placeholder up. Other channels that I don't get say Subscription Service.

What bugs me is Americans pay $9.99 & we pay $11.99.I know it's only a toonie but we're always getting shafted. Just for that alone I refuse to buy it. 

Don't we pay less for Netflix?

We pay the same for Netflix as the US.  We luck out.  Although the US version has significantly more content.

 

Also keep in mind that for WWE Network in Canada, it is not an Over The Top service offered by WWE and they do not get your $11.99.  They licensed the Canadian Network rights to Rogers for a fee (said to be very significant and was "too good to pass up").

As mentioned in another thread.. You may be able to get this streamed using a kodi box. I will check it out tonight if I get a chance...

As mentioned in another thread.. You may be able to get this streamed using a kodi box. I will check it out tonight if I get a chance...

While I have not done so, my understanding is it is very easy to stream the US version.  When you sign up, you need to use any random US address and a router but once signed up, you never need the router again (or so I have been told).

 

The benefit to the Canadian version is the PPV's on terrestrial channel so you have no worries about streaming.buffering issues when a million+ people all try to watch WrestleMania.  Our content is delivered from the source via satellite.

Do these local wrestling shows actually make the promoters money?  I've been under the impression most of these shows lose money when you factor in all the comps for what is usually a small crowd at these events.  And I would imagine the gate is the most important revenue source by far.  What other revenue sources are there that compare to  that?

Do these local wrestling shows actually make the promoters money?  I've been under the impression most of these shows lose money when you factor in all the comps for what is usually a small crowd at these events.  And I would imagine the gate is the most important revenue source by far.  What other revenue sources are there that compare to  that?

 

I would imagine a cut of the bar sales would do it.  A place like Doubles isn't packing people in on a regular basis so anything that brings people in the door (even if they don't pay to get in) is a win for them.  The price of a ticket compared to a few hours of drinking/eating is pretty small I would think.

 

Do these local wrestling shows actually make the promoters money?  I've been under the impression most of these shows lose money when you factor in all the comps for what is usually a small crowd at these events.  And I would imagine the gate is the most important revenue source by far.  What other revenue sources are there that compare to  that?

 

I would imagine a cut of the bar sales would do it.  A place like Doubles isn't packing people in on a regular basis so anything that brings people in the door (even if they don't pay to get in) is a win for them.  The price of a ticket compared to a few hours of drinking/eating is pretty small I would think.

 

I guess.  You have to pay for the wrestlers, their accomodations, their travel, renting ring equipment, paying someone to set everything up, security.  I would think bringing in one "big name" to do a show would cost a thousand alone.

No one gets into promoting local wrestling to make money. If you make money, great. Winnipeg is a tough place because we're an "island" with no other strong markets nearby. That's why WWE rarely ever comes here. Other areas with more resources can certainly generate money but its a very few "indy" promotions that are good money-makers.

I've made money. I've lost money. I have a great team of guys and we win together and lose together. For example, our last show was a huge success and we had 300 people at the show. Everyone got paid more and I got to go home with money in my pocket.

Our first show in 2002 was at the IGAC at U of M. 1700+ fans. Eddie Guerrero, Honky Tonk Man, Brutus Beefcake and our crew. Made lots of money. Our next "big show" was a few months later and was a devastating loss even though we drew 1200 fans at Shaw Park. But the venue was an albatross around our necks and we almost ended up in court.

Our main regular venue from 2002-2008 was the LID Nightclub where the owner was a close friend so we'd our regular weekly/monthly shows and aproximately quarterly we'd bring in WWE/TNA talent. I had a great deal with the venue because of my relationship with the owner.

Doubles is a good venue. We have a good relationship.

Another revenue stream is sponsorship. It used to be easier in Winnipeg but the wrestling business is highly competitive and can be somewhat nasty. And traditionally, not overly successful. Many promotions start because everyone thinks they know better...and then go out of business and the vast majority of people never even hear of them. We're the longest running promotion in the province (14+ years) and the only one currently running a regular reputable Winnipeg show. One of our competitors does tours every couple of months to small towns where they have managed to secure strong local sponsorship. I've never been a big fan of tours personally just because I dont want to go on the road.

We've had shows where we sell a "guarantee". Ie. the venue pays X amount of dollars and then keeps all revenue (ticket sales etc). We've had deals where we get a small guarantee and the gate revenue. But yes, the main revenue is ticket sales. We've always been pretty decent with ticket sales. Wrestling is mostly cyclical in nature so we've had ups and down. The politics of wrestling impact you such as a competitor starting up and raiding your talent.

For a time, there wasnt a lot of good young wrestlers being produced locally. We experienced an increase in young talent with several guys coming from Lance Storm's academy in Calgary. Having Kenny Omega on our roster helps with giving incentives to guys to want to be here. And I think our shows are fun and entertaining from a creative perspective so the boys enjoy taking part.

I could go on for days lol. Lots of stories. Lots of stories about the big names.

We've brought in:

Eddie Guerrero (Last North American show before re-signing with WWE)

Honky Tonk Man (several times)

Brutus Beefcake

Jim Neidhart

Chris Sabin

Petey Williams

Amazing Red

Steve Corino (many times)

Christopher Daniels

Ultimo Dragon

Brian Christopher

Black Pearl

Davey Richards

El Generico (Sammy Zayn in WWE)

Kevin Steen (Kevin Owens in WWE)

Samoa Joe (3 times)

AJ Styles

Probably a few im forgetting...

Whoops forgot the Road Warriors and Buff Bagwell.

Do these local wrestling shows actually make the promoters money? I've been under the impression most of these shows lose money when you factor in all the comps for what is usually a small crowd at these events. And I would imagine the gate is the most important revenue source by far. What other revenue sources are there that compare to that?

I would imagine a cut of the bar sales would do it. A place like Doubles isn't packing people in on a regular basis so anything that brings people in the door (even if they don't pay to get in) is a win for them. The price of a ticket compared to a few hours of drinking/eating is pretty small I would think.

I guess. You have to pay for the wrestlers, their accomodations, their travel, renting ring equipment, paying someone to set everything up, security. I would think bringing in one "big name" to do a show would cost a thousand alone.

Cost of one name:

airfare

hotel

his pay for the night (anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand).

When Kurt Angle left WWE, I was the first promotion that asked to book him. I was told $5000. i said done. The next day, the booking agent (TNA) emailed me to say sorry, it's now $10.000 and no video can be taken of the event (which is where promotions can make money, DVD sales). $5000 and DVD sales, I would have done but not $10 000 and no DVD.

Makes me wonder how your old partner was able to bring in a dozen names to his shows on chevrier all with maybe 200 in the crowd.

I went to at least 5 shows within a year and each show had some big names.

Makes me wonder how your old partner was able to bring in a dozen names to his shows on chevrier all with maybe 200 in the crowd.

I went to at least 5 shows within a year and each show had some big names.

An investor willing to lose money in the short term to make money in the long term. Long term never happened. I'm cool with those guys personally but disagree strongly with their business plan. Once you get down to the 5th name let alone the 10th on a single show you're not selling more tickets.

They also didn't appeal to the hardcore local fans. There was one weekend when we both had shows. Them with the names and the hype and U.S. with not a penny of advertising and using our local crew at Dylan's and we drew more.

After doing a quick look... it appears a SD feed of the WWE network is on Kodi ,  not the greatest quality feed but for free it's adequate. 

 

 

 

Do these local wrestling shows actually make the promoters money? I've been under the impression most of these shows lose money when you factor in all the comps for what is usually a small crowd at these events. And I would imagine the gate is the most important revenue source by far. What other revenue sources are there that compare to that?

I would imagine a cut of the bar sales would do it. A place like Doubles isn't packing people in on a regular basis so anything that brings people in the door (even if they don't pay to get in) is a win for them. The price of a ticket compared to a few hours of drinking/eating is pretty small I would think.

I guess. You have to pay for the wrestlers, their accomodations, their travel, renting ring equipment, paying someone to set everything up, security. I would think bringing in one "big name" to do a show would cost a thousand alone.

Cost of one name:

airfare

hotel

his pay for the night (anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand).

When Kurt Angle left WWE, I was the first promotion that asked to book him. I was told $5000. i said done. The next day, the booking agent (TNA) emailed me to say sorry, it's now $10.000 and no video can be taken of the event (which is where promotions can make money, DVD sales). $5000 and DVD sales, I would have done but not $10 000 and no DVD.

 

Ok.  Thanks for that info.  Forgot about the sponsorships.

 

Was it some other promotion that had Luger, Steiner/s and a few others at U of M a few years ago?

That promotion was run by my former partner. We started PCW together in late 2001. We split in August 2003. He started the one that did those shows.

Prediction time.  Im usually pretty bad at this as I tend to over think it or inject "what I would do" too much (but to be fair, what I would do is almost always better than what WWE does *wink wink*)

 

I was amused to hear Hustler express shock that betting on Wrestlemania is very popular and places actually accept bets.  He would be more shocked to learn that the odds change drastically shortly before the show when the production meeting is held and employees know the results and start placing their own bets with insider information.

 

Anyway...

 

Pre Show:

 

WWE Tag Team Championship: Cesaro & Kidd vs New Day vs The Usos vs Los Matadores

Prediction: Cesaro & Kidd retain.  They are new champs and are a good act.  Wrestling is always more interesting with heels on top and babyfaces chasing.  Cesaro deserves a singles push and a good run as tag champs could lead to that.

Plan B: Usos regain the championship.  They are a fantastic team and very over.  But one of them is injured so this is doubtful.  WWE usually books for the faces moreso than heels so you never know.

 

Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royale

Prediction: Mizdow.  The crowd will pop big for his turn (finally).  They've teased the break up for a long time and in fact broke them up a couple of weeks ago and then pretended it didnt happen which makes me think they wanted to do it in a bigger spot.

Plan B: Hideo Itami. He won the NXT tournament this week to be entered into the Battle Royale.  If last years winner indicates they want to use this spot for a popular worker to get over (even though the dropped the Cesaro push later) this would be a good way to introduce the former KENTA to the WWE audience, the smallest man winning the biggest trophy.

Plan C: Sheamus wins.

 

Main Show:

 

Intercontinental Ladder Match: Wade Barrett© vs Daniel Bryan vs R-Truth vs Luke Harper vs Dolph Ziggler vs Stardust vs Dean Ambrose

Prediction: Daniel Bryan.  The IC title means nothing.  If this match is designed to make it mean something, the Bryan for the win.  WWE might also see it as a way to get the fans to stop rejecting every main even angle that doesnt involve him if they accept that he's a top guy in the mid-card.

Plan B: Hard to say.  I waffle on Ziggler or Ambrose.  Ziggler deserves the push and WWE keeps teasing it.  Ambrose has already had his balls dropped to a degree.  Ill ride the fence on this one and claim I was right either way.

 

AJ Lee & Paige vs The Bella Twins

Prediction: Bellas.  They are the Diva darlings right now and a solid act even though WWE seems incapable of pushing both of them at the same time with Nicole being the twin de jour.

 

Randy Orton vs Seth Rollins

Prediction: Orton.  Though i dont really care.  Seth has the MITB briefcase and is in a holding pattern until he can use.  He doesnt need the win.  Orton just returned so he goes over.

 

The Undertaker vs Bray Wyatt

Prediction: Undertaker.  No reason to beat him again especially if they have him pencilled in for a retirement match in Dallas next year (against Sting perhaps).

 

United States Championship: John Cena vs Rusev©

Prediction: John Cena.  Rusev is great but the feud is over is he goes over again and neither have anything else to do right now.  A cena wins keeps him away from the top of the card while Reigns is being established.  And Rusev will eventually get the win back which is better in the long run.

 

The Real Main Event: Sting vs HHH

Prediction: Sting.  No other outcome makes any sense whatsoever other then the fact it's Hunter and he has a habit of cutting people's balls off, especially guys from WCW.  A Sting loss renders his arrival moot.  A Hunter loss/win doesnt change anything for him.  if they are thinking Sting vs Taker in a double Retirement Match in Dallas next year (home State for both guys), Sting must win.

 

WWE Championship: Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar©

Prediction: Roman Reigns.  Because WWE sucks and this is what they want to do, fans be damned.

Plan B: Roman wins when The Rock shows up and helps his cousin, teasing Rock vs Brock for next year in Dallas

Plan C: Roman wins when Paul Heyman turns on Brock

Plan D: Brock wins because he just re-signed for three years and he's the best thing they've got.

Plan E: Roman Wins, Seth cashes in.

 

Truth be told, I expect Roman to win clean.  But the Rock will likely be there so his involvement seems likely.  Rumor has it Hunter was trying to change Vince's mind and keep the strap on Brock due to fan backlash.  Seems like in recent Hunter vs Vince battles, Vince wins.  We'll see...