Dave Meltzer recently attempted to clarify the confusion surrounding WWE’s partnerships with multiple streaming platforms. With the company’s Netflix deal set to kick off in January, giving them the broadcast rights for “WWE Raw,” attention will then shift to the WWE-Peacock relationship set to expire sometime in 2026. Currently hosting WWE’s enormous video library, the deal’s expiration in 2026 raises questions about where all that content will go. Speaking on “Wrestling Observer Radio,” Meltzer acknowledged the confusion but seemed fairly confident everything would wind up on Netflix eventually.
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“The PLEs, both for NXT and WWE, those are under contract to Peacock,” Meltzer said. “Even though NXT itself is under contract to CW, the PLEs are under contract to Peacock…Until that contract ends, which I believe is 2026, that’s not gonna change. But it does change the dynamic in the sense that everywhere else in the world, all these events are gonna be on Netflix. And I’m sure the idea is…when that contract is up, all of those things will move to Netflix.”
Meltzer added that the reboot of “Saturday Night’s Main Event,” a longstanding NBC property, should continue to stream on Peacock. NBC also acquired the broadcast rights to “WWE SmackDown” this year, moving the show from FOX beginning in September. Meltzer speculated on how this may impact the upcoming Netflix deal.Â
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“Originally you would think that Peacock would keep ‘SmackDown,’ ’cause it was part of the family,” Meltzer began. “And contractually, with its deal, maybe that’s the case…I presume SmackDown depends on what the contract is, but when the contract is up, they’re two different companies. And then you gotta negotiate them individually, and they may end up on Netflix anyway. So that’s down the road, the changes.”
