By Chris Walters on April 13, 2004 at 4:18 PM EST

- Steve Austin and Vince McMahon still haven't reached any sort of compromise on a new deal which would determine which party gets control of Austin's outside, non-WWE projects. Reportedly, McMahon is now ready to wait it out with Austin, feeling that Stone Cold will return sooner rather than later because he wants and needs to be on TV for both his character value and personal enjoyment.

- Furthermore, Austin is reportedly "confident" that a new deal between him and WWE can be ironed out in the near future according to sources close to Austin

- All in all, the entire situation doesn't appear to be as serious as originally thought but Austin probably won't be appearing on any WWE shows until a new contract is agreed upon.

BREAKING NEWS: Austin Confirms His WWE Retirement; PROOF Here From WWE.com >>

Credit: PWInsider.com, 1Wrestling.com