WWE TV Contract Situation and Taping Update

Over a week ago, as WWE was set to tape five weeks worth of their shows in quick succession, Vince McMahon made the abrupt decision for Raw, SmackDown and NXT to instead go live each week. But late last week, Vince changed WWE’s taping schedule again so that shows will no longer be live each week.

The reason for the original decision to go live each week reportedly had to do with WWE’s TV contracts. FOX and NBC Universal (which owns USA) allow for only a certain amount of taped TV shows per year and in a time of reduced advertising revenue and an uncertain economy, Vince McMahon didn’t want to give them any opening to break their contract or reduce money paid to WWE.

But at some point in the past week, both companies told Vince McMahon that they won’t penalize WWE for not producing live shows each week as long as the shows are new, first run programming, according to Dave Meltzer.

“I think that at some point, both companies did tell Vince this week that we will not cut your money if you send us first run programming that’s not live,” Meltzer said on Wrestling Observer Radio. “So Vince changed the schedule. He doesn’t have to go live.”

WWE’s new schedule still will require wrestlers to either travel to the shows frequently or in some cases, decide to stay in Florida. Several wrestlers already live in Florida, but some who don’t are choosing to stay in the state rather than travel back and forth, Meltzer said.