WWE may have placed a bid to buy TNA, which would have an impact on the wrestling industry both in positive and negative lights.
WWE monopolized the wrestling industry in 2001, when they bought out long-time competitor WCW. Throughout the late 1990’s, these companies battled on Monday nights for ratings supremecy, with WCW even “winning” for a time. However, when WWE took over viewership in 1998, it sent Nitro into a tailspin, which led to them being put up for sale. Vince McMahon then bought them out and ended WCW. This included bringing in a portion of the roster from Nitro, and using them for the “Invasion” angle and the first Brand Extension, which began in 2002.
15 years later, it seems WWE may be attempting this again. We noted New York Post’s report of the company potentially looking to buy TNA Wrestling, whose majority ownership stake may be able to be had. The report notes that TNA’s money situation may be poor enough to where investor Aroluxe Marketing has control over the “TNA” trademark. Sinclair Broadcasting Group, which owns Ring of Honor, is rumored to have bid on them as well. The report notes that TNA could be worth $40 million.
If WWE buys TNA, it would reshape wrestling again. Maybe not as impactful as the purchase of WCW, but taking away one of the next-best promotions would leave some things to be considered. The situation could shine bright in some aspects or be dark in others. Factors include the WWE Network, size of the roster, the two-hour Impact Wrestling show, and monopolization, among others.
So, if World Wrestling Entertainment buys TNA, what would be the pros and cons of the transaction?
Source: WWE.com
Pro: WWE’s Expanded Content Library
Since the WWE Network launched in February 2014, the content has grown. It took a while for this to happen, as they had to feel out how this would work, which began with a loss of money and releasing wrestlers from their contracts. However, it got to a point where you can watch pretty much every old episode of Raw and SmackDown. Old wrestling shows can be viewed too, including every episode of WCW’s Monday Nitro.
The thousands of hours of content have helped the streaming service grow, with no end in sight. Part of the never-ending expansion would include acquiring TNA, which dates back to 2002. All those weekly pay-per-views and hundreds of hours of Impact Wrestling would fill a chuck of the WWE Network. It would draw in the TNA fanbase that is only paying the fixed price of $9.99 to see every old show that got put on. Why wouldn’t WWE want to do this? As the network subscribers grow, so does their pockets.
Use of TNA content for DVDs and TV can’t be left out either. WWE would be able to add in anything from the company’s 14-year existence, referencing the show as well (which they can do, but choose not to). If WWE wanted to make a new DVD for Sting, instead of just highlighting his WCW career, they could use anything from and talking about his TNA stay.
Acquiring all this content would make Vince and Co. salivate, and provide more easily accessible wrestling for fans to watch, for a price.
WWE.com
Con: Monopolizing the Market (Again)
In 2001, we saw WCW, which had once been the top wrestling company, according to TV ratings, disappear. WWE still references the defunct product, but they have been gone from airways since that final Nitro show in Panama City, FL.
When WWE took over and eliminated WCW, they monopolized the wrestling market. The next-closest show would have been miles away from Vince McMahon’s status. While this arguably led to the development of TNA, ROH, and PWG, among others, they still haven’t come close to WWE in over a decade of existence.
If WWE bought TNA, they would be monopolizing the market again. Not to the degree of WCW, but it would be taking away potentially the United States’ No. 2 wrestling promotion.
Removing TNA from wrestling would give WWE another percentage of the open market, one they don’t necessarily need. This would be reeling in a company could take away fans from them or acquire their former talents. However, having options is healthy for the business.
Limitations mean everyone could be stuck with a few choices or just one. Not all fans would want to watch WWE, and might not be interested in the other available options, so they may just back away from wrestling. It would stunt the growth of wrestling, which has had a red-hot 2016.
Taking away a competitor would, again, be unhealthy for the business. While TNA isn’t much of a threat to WWE, they still lurk in the background, like ROH and Lucha Underground do. Competing against these smaller companies, which would mean WWE trying to put out their best product every week, would diminish. Why would they look to do their best if there’s no one around to lay a finger?
A monopoly over the wrestling industry would continue in this instance, which wouldn’t be for the best.
WWE.com
Pro: Expanded Roster
When WWE took over WCW in 2001, they acquired a handful of their talent. The gripe, however, had been that the version of the roster that carried over was watered down. Top stars like Sting, Ric Flair, Scott Steiner, and Goldberg didn’t initially make the jump, leaving the likes of Booker T, Shawn Stasiak, Shawn O’Haire, and Chuck Palumbo, among others, leading the group.
However, this still expanded WWE’s roster, and contributed to the first Brand Extension in 2002. This split the deep roster into two shows, which gave others opportunities. By buying TNA, there could be a similar impact.
WWE already has a Brand Extension in place, which began in July. Like the first one, this has the roster divided on Raw and SmackDown. There had been issues with depth, though, which contributed to Rhyno, Curt Hawkins, and nearly Shelton Benjamin being brought back. NXT stars were used too. To add even more depth, though, the TNA stars willing to appear on WWE programming could fill extra voids. The only issue would be how a chunk of their roster is made up of former WWE talents, some of which were released or requested to be let go. Would they be willing to accept the second chance, if there are hard feelings? When in doubt, though, money talks.
Con: Potential Loss of Jobs
The other side of the spectrum of an expanded roster would be not everyone would make the cut. TNA has 43 wrestlers under their control. The chances of half, maybe even a quarter of that group making WWE is slim. There can only be so many wrestlers on the roster, with opportunities needed for everyone.
Let’s say WWE agrees to take 8 TNA talents. That leaves 35 for the rest of the industry. While they would likely spread out all over the world, that may take away from other’s opportunities who have an established spot on a show like NJPW, ROH, Lucha Underground, EVOLVE, or PWG’s monthly shows. That would trickle further down the independent scene, which could lead to some of those promotions getting an upgrade in talent, but could they afford it?
As noted, having more options is healthy for the wrestling business. However, some of these choices need to be ones that can afford to have a sizable talent pool, which factors into pay. If they can afford, that’s fine. If not, it may cause a problem and leave some without work.
An Unlikely Pro: Maybe Impact Wrestling Stays Alive
WCW became defunct with the 2001 acquisition. They could have ran two shows, similar to how Raw and SmackDown are used, but Vince McMahon’s want to bury his competition triumphed. WCW hasn’t attempted to be revived during this 15-year span, unlike ECW in the mid-2000’s.
WWE would be left with this option again with Impact Wrestling, which airs Thursday nights. Raw, SmackDown, and NXT already cover Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. Two live pay-per-views can now be seen on two Sundays of every month, too. If WWE wanted to, they could cover five of the seven days of the week, having four brands under their banner.
While there would be plenty of wrestling (arguably too much), fans would have the option to watch on almost any day of the week (they still do with the current system). If they aren’t around for Raw, SmackDown, and NXT, why not flip on another WWE product in Impact Wrestling?
However, as seen in 2001, WCW didn’t get cared about. The Chairman wanted to “squeeze the life” out of his competition, which he did. While TNA isn’t on the level of WCW, seeing McMahon do the same thing wouldn’t be surprising. Why keep something that’s not his creation on the air? Creating a new Thursday program would give WWE the credit, or just spreading out the acquired parts of the roster across Raw, SmackDown, and NXT. That would seem to be the more likely option, based on the past.
What would you see as the pros and cons of WWE potentially buying TNA? Let us know below.
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