WWE is shutting down WWE Network as a standalone service in the U.S. next month, when it will move exclusively to NBCUniversal’s Peacock.
The cutover date is April 4 — a week ahead of WrestleMania 37 — and prior to that, WWE Network customers will need to have signed up for a Peacock subscription in order to keep getting all the ring action.
As previously announced, under the companies’ multiyear deal, all WWE Network content including all pay-per-view events will be available on Peacock Premium with ads, regularly priced at $4.99 per month (half the $9.99 monthly cost of WWE Network).
In a limited-time promo, Peacock starting Monday (March 8) is offering new customers four months of Peacock Premium with ads for $9.99, for a 50% discount. More info on the special offer, which expires April 9, is available at this link.
WWE Network also will be available on the $9.99/month ad-free version of Peacock Premium; also note that Peacock Premium with ads is included at no additional cost for Comcast’s Xfinity X1 and Flex customers and Cox Contour customers.
NBCU is banking on the WWE deal to bulk up Peacock’s subscriber rolls. According to WWE, in the fourth quarter of 2020, WWE Network had 1.5 million average paid subscribers. Comcast said Peacock had 33 million signups in the U.S. at year-end, but hasn’t provided metrics on how many of those are paying subscribers.
Starting March 18, Peacock Premium will begin rolling out WWE Network content just before Fastlane on March 21, the first WWE PPV event on the NBCU service. That will include replays of all past WrestleManias leading up to WrestleMania 37, set to run April 10–11, 2021, in Tampa, Fla., as well as every PPV event from 2020. (Going forward, fans in the U.S. will still be able to purchase WWE’s PPV events on an a la carte basis separate from Peacock.)
Other WWE Network content coming to Peacock Premium this month is set to include current and/or most recent season episodes of WWE original series “Steve Austin’s The Broken Skull Sessions,” “WWE Chronicle” and “WWE Icons”; in-ring action with new weekly episodes of “NXT” the day after air; and 2021 replays of “RAW” and “SmackDown” 30 days after they air on TV. Peacock subscribers also will be able to watch WWE documentaries including “Undertaker: The Last Ride,” “WWE 24” and “WWE Untold”; reality series including “Total Bellas”; topical moments like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin Week; and playlists showcasing current Superstars.
NBCU said it will regularly add WWE Network content to the library, eventually making the entire WWE Network archive — including every WWE, WCW, and ECW PPV event in history — available to stream on demand before SummerSlam 2021.
Meanwhile, Peacock will ladle out some WWE material for free. The free, ad-supported tier of Peacock will debut a new WWE channel, which will include select WWE original shows such as reality shows “Miz and Mrs.,” “Total Bellas” and “Total Divas”; recent in-ring content; and new weekly episodes of select live shows like “RAW Talk” and “The Bump,” both live and on demand.
