Could Wrestlemania ever be free?

DMW

I know this sounds like a long shot but hear me out.

I started thinking about this when I heard that super bowl ads were costing ridiculous amounts of money, something like $3 million for 30 seconds. My question is, from a business stand point, do you think making wrestlemania a network television event could be a good idea?

To answer this question effectively it would take some pretty serious number chrunching, as you would have to take into account the number of viewers (keeping in mind that it would be exponentially more than the current buyrates), how that would equate to the price of air time for advertisers, and then how that compares to the total revenue of a ppv. My guess (and i really mean guess) is that the total revenue from broadcasting Wrestlemania for free on network television probably wouldn't be that different from ppv revenue. If it were, I would imagine the super bowl would have become a ppv event a few years ago.

One big reason for making it free is expanding your market. Wrestlemania is the biggest and best display of what WWE has to offer, and more than any other wrestling event is likely to draw new fans, not to mention it's a great gesture for the hardcore fans that spend a lot of money on all the other events. I imagine after a few years Wrestlemania could become a major annual television event, and could be best for business in the long run.

Any thought?

AudioSavior

The only real way to test it and get the prices you would want from ads is to have a free WM. It would have to have no abnormal fees for adds and see what the ratings were. If the advertisers would be willing to spend some serious cash to get their adds infront of what WWE would hope to be a huge audience, then it would be doable.

Papa Shango

How frequent are the commercial breaks in other major live sports events in america?

I dont think i could cope with commercial breaks on a 'ppv'... But thats easy for me to say because I dont have to pay for most PPVs.

But I can see what your both saying.. More exposure and probably more revenue will be gained by going for it.