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WWE has updated the 24-7.wwe.com website with tons of details on the programming for WWE 24/7 which appears as if it will start in October. Already up are schedules of what will air for the first month.
In October, some of the things that will air include Halloween Havoc '89, Undertaker: He Buries Them Alive, Paul Bearer: Hits from the Crypt, WWF Primetime Wrestling 4/24/89, Tuesday Night Titans 5/29/84, The History of ECW Part 1 and 2, WrestleMania's Greatest Hits, The Monday Night Wars 9/11/95 and 9/18/95, and much more. |
http://24-7.wwe.com/schedule.html(Here's a "complete" list of the October schedule, subject to change)
However, not many cable companies are doing this, and only Digital Cable can provide it. If Comcast Cable carries this, I'll be all over this faster than Dusty Rhodes on a side of steak. If not, I'm going to be hunting for a provider for all of this.
It's unclear whether or not they'll be charging for each segment, ala carte. Comcast recently added "NFL on Demand" to their service...it's free and it destroys! However, On Demand also features alot of Pay-per-View movies on top of the standard stuff.
Most of the channels/areas on On Demand feature a good selection of stuff to compliment their regular airings. Since WWE doesn't have a "WWE Channel", I'll be shocked if they're giving away the ENTIRE line-up for free. I'd be happy with a few freebies a month, with trailers hyping the Pay-per-view portions. Similar to the way
NWA/TNA gives away a few "Greatest Matches" each month-- "hooks" to perk your interest in the PPV stuff.
No word on whether or not Comcast is planning to pick up "WWE On Demand", yet. Say what you want about Comcast, but since they've added On Demand, it rules. They dont' charge extra for it. They also gave me two months of free cable...just for being a swelll guy who pays his bills.
In the meantime....WWE's new "Video On Demand" broadband content looks intriguing. You can pay 1.95 to watch one match, or 40 bucks for an annual subscription. That's pretty reasonable.You can only view each match on your computer for 7 days. I prefer to watch my TV... but when I get my new computer, my tune might change.
Too bad TNA went with the wrong approach. They put all their best matches in recent history for free, so now when new fans watch Impact or Xplosion, they'll witness how horrible TNA is right now.
About the WWE On Demand, I have no clue how much it's going to be, but it's definitely not going to be free (bastards!). I expect it to be as much as a normal monthly PPV that isn't named Wrestlemania, otherwise it's too much for old footage that most "new" fans wouldn't give a rats ass about.
That example seems pretty good, but who knows how long the WWE will stick to this plan. People will not want to cough up $40-50 every month for this stuff. Newer fans probably could care less about the old wrestling. However, I think it is a great idea. I wonder if this WWE on Demand thing will last for a few months, a year, or for a really long time. It could die out quickly (like a lot of experiments WWE tried), or it could go on for a long time. Will they follow a good format with shows like Prime Time, MSG, etc. Also will it become available to more cable companies?? A lot of unanswered questions will be played out in the coming year.