Posted inSocial Media, News

X and WWE – Exclusive Content Deal!

X is getting into the ring with the WWE

by Ishika Nanda

More of this topic

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WWE broadcasted on X!

With the announcement of a new, exclusive content agreement with the WWE, X has expanded its lineup of concerts to include more video material.

According to the statement, timed matches between well-known WWE performers will be featured on a new weekly show that WWE will broadcast on X.

The stars that are a part of this program have the potential to attract a large number of WWE fans to the app. Additionally, according to X, talk about wrestling rose 11% in 2023 compared to the previous year.

It’s challenging to put a precise number on those results because X appears to have altered some of its metrics, but 13.7 million users follow the official WWE account on the app, indicating that WWE is obviously well-liked.

As previously mentioned, the new initiative will broaden X’s selection of original content as it works toward becoming a “video first platform.”

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Future Features

X has already inked exclusive contracts for video content with:

  • Paris Hilton, working on an unnamed project
  • Tucker Carlson, whose appearances on the app consistently garner millions of views
  • Don Lemon, who will shortly launch his own show, “Don Lemon Show,”
  • Tulsi Gabbard is creating a series of documentary-style shows centered on American politics,
  • Jim Rome is bringing his hit show “The Jungle” to the app, where it will air five times a week.

Together with this, X is experimenting with better ad income split agreements to entice leading online producers to upload content to the app. One such example is YouTuber MrBeast, who has reposted several of his videos on X.

Although having any of Mr. Beast’s content in the app expands its programming slate and X hopes to attract the attention of other creators by earning enough ad revenue, I don’t expect him to switch to X exclusively given that he makes the majority of his money from YouTube.

It’s worth noting that controversial podcast host Joe Rogan plans to re-share his content with X, maybe including footage from his broadcasts. Elon Musk is also expected to be a guest of UFC CEO Dana White at this weekend’s “UFC Apex” in Las Vegas.

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X’s New Video Tab

X is expanding its roster over time and experimenting with a new, dedicated video tab in the app, which could help to further promote its programming, even though it may not yet have a knockout slate of alternative video material.

Naturally, Twitter attempted this same strategy prior to Elon, with varying degrees of success.

In 2016, Twitter launched a major campaign to provide programming akin to television, securing exclusive rights to broadcast MLB, NFL, and NBA games straight within the app. That was a part of a larger initiative to establish a link between the source material and the increase in live event tweeting. Twitter believed that if it could merge the two, it would be able to create an entertainment powerhouse by leveraging both the conversation and the content in one stream. Its research had shown that it was the leading destination for online engagement around live sports events and TV shows.

However, it was unsuccessful.

Users’ overall engagement was reduced by limiting the content to a smaller audience by bringing in an app, possibly because only a small percentage of people actually use Twitter. Regardless of the reason, users were not particularly enthralled with having tweets and the show running side by side.

But since then, things have changed.

The time may be right for X to launch this new initiative, which could result in much greater advertising opportunities, since social platforms are now more entertaining in and of themselves than just the discussion around them. More people are also likely to consume content directly within social apps.

Does The “Free Speech” Scare People Away?

Elon’s “free speech” mission on the app is further advanced by signing contentious material, and it appears that X plans to use its video programming to become more involved in political discourse during the next election cycle.

The question then, I suppose, will be what occurs next, particularly if sponsors decide to stick away from the app.

Though the X team is hopeful that this new push for exclusive content will be the key to making this a reality, drawing in so many viewers across so many issue areas that it will simply become too tempting a draw for ad partners, it still seems unlikely that X can pull it off.

Once more, historical performance is not encouraging for this approach, and X’s choice to concentrate on particular broadcasters and content may limit its possibilities in any case.

But that’s the plan, and it’s a step in the right direction to include a WWE-only program.

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