WWE® (NYSE:WWE) today announced that its digital subscription
service, WWE Network, reached a record 1.82 million total
subscribers following last night’s WrestleMania®, the most viewed
WrestleMania in history. This is a 39% increase from March 30,
2015, the day after WrestleMania last year.
“History was made last night with both a record-setting crowd at
AT&T Stadium and more households than ever before watching
WrestleMania on WWE Network,” said WWE Chairman & CEO Vince
McMahon. “WWE Network continues to drive transformative growth for
our company.”
“Results today further demonstrate the power of our brand,
illustrate our potential to drive long-term growth and provide
evidence that we are effectively executing our multi-platform
content strategy,” said George Barrios, WWE Chief Strategy &
Financial Officer.
WWE Network Subscriber
Highlights
- WWE Network reached record levels of
total subscribers, total domestic subscribers and total
international subscribers as of April 4, 2016
- Total domestic subscribers increased
24% to 1.39 million; total international subscribers increased 126%
to 434,000 from March 30, 2015 – the day after WrestleMania last
year
- Domestic and international paid
subscribers reached 1.11 million and 345,000, respectively as of
April 4, 2016
WWE Network total subscribers at
WrestleMania 32 and WrestleMania 311,2,3:
Total
Subscribers(thousands)
April 4th,
2016WrestleMania 32
March 30th,
2015WrestleMania 31
% Growth Total (Paid + Free Trial)
1,824 1,315
39% Total Paid 1,454 1,315
11%
Total Domestic (Paid + Free Trial)
1,390 1,123
24% Domestic Paid 1,109 1,123
-1%
Total International (Paid + Free Trial)
434 192
126% International Paid 345 192
80% (1) Metrics reflect subscribers who are
direct customers of WWE Network and subscribers reported under
licensed partner agreements, which have different economic terms
for the network. The impact of these subscribers on WWE Network
results is reflected in the network’s average revenue per
subscriber (ARPU). (2)
The Company did not offer a free trial
promotion in March, 2015.
(3)
Additional information regarding WWE
Network subscriber levels can be found in the Company’s website
presentation at www.ir.corporate.investors.com.
WrestleMania Engagement
Milestones
- Video views reached 65 million across
social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Vine, and
YouTube), representing an 87% increase over last year
- WrestleMania garnered a record 10.9
million social media fan engagements4, up 19% from the prior
year
(4) Social media fan engagements are defined as the cumulative
fan response to WWE content measured by the number of “likes”,
“follows”, “shares”, “mentions”, and “retweets” across social media
platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and
Tumblr.
WWE 2016 Perspective
Q1 2016: Based upon preliminary
data to date, WWE Network attracted an average of approximately
1.29 million paid subscribers over the first quarter 2016,
representing a 39% increase from the first quarter 2015 average.
The first quarter 2016 average was in-line with guidance of 1.28
million (+/- 2%).5
The Company expects to exceed the high end of the range of its
estimated first quarter 2016 Adjusted OIBDA of approximately $19
million reflecting higher performance expectations across its
businesses.
Q2 2016: If the acquisition and
retention of subscribers is consistent with recent activity, the
range of average paid subscribers for the second quarter 2016 would
be 1.48 – 1.55 million, representing an increase of approximately
22% - 27% from the second quarter 2015.5 As future subscriber
performance may differ from recent trends, this range is provided
for perspective rather than as guidance.
(5) Additional information regarding estimated WWE Network
subscriber levels can be found in the Company’s website
presentation at www.ir.corporate.investors.com.
2016: WWE management continues to
believe that if the average paid subscribers to WWE Network
increases at a rate between 20% to 25% in 2016, 2016 Adjusted OIBDA
could be in a range of approximately $70 million to $85 million.
This range assumes the previously communicated incremental
investment of $15 million to $20 million in content, technology and
emerging markets.
Additional Information
As previously announced, WWE is hosting a conference call at
3:00 p.m. ET today to provide an update on the growth of WWE
Network, including the level of subscribers following WrestleMania.
All interested parties are welcome to listen to a live web cast
that will be hosted through the Company’s web site at
ir.corporate.wwe.com. Participants can access the conference call
by dialing 855-200-4993 (toll free) or 913-489-5104 from outside
the U.S. (conference ID for both lines: 5504071).
The presentation referenced during the call has been made
available on the Company’s website at ir.corporate.wwe.com. A
replay of the call will be available approximately two hours after
the conference call concludes, and can be accessed on the Company’s
web site.
About WWE Network
WWE Network is the only place to get all 12 WWE pay-per-view
events, including WrestleMania, at no additional cost plus 24/7
programming featuring ground-breaking original series, reality
shows, documentaries, classic matches, exclusive coverage of
special events and the most comprehensive video-on-demand library
with nearly 5,000 hours of content, including every WWE, WCW® and
ECW® pay-per-view.
Like other digital subscription services, such as Netflix and
Hulu, fans are able to sign up for WWE Network online by going to
WWENetwork.com, and can watch WWE Network on their TVs through
connected devices such as Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PlayStation 4,
Xbox One, Xbox 360, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku streaming
devices as well as Smart TVs including Sony, Samsung and
Panasonic.
For a complete listing of WWE Network availability by country
and device, please click here.
About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated
media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment.
The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and
deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE
is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television
programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms.
WWE programming reaches more than 650 million homes worldwide in 24
languages. WWE Network, the first-ever 24/7 over-the-top premium
network that includes all live pay-per-views, scheduled programming
and a massive video-on-demand library, is currently available in
more than 180 countries. The company is headquartered in Stamford,
Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Mexico City,
Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Dubai, Munich and Tokyo.
Additional information on WWE (NYSE: WWE) can be found at
wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global
activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.
Trademarks: All WWE programming, talent names, images,
likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves, trademarks, logos and
copyrights are the exclusive property of WWE and its subsidiaries.
All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are the property of
their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains
forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions
of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject
to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties
include, without limitation, risks relating to: WWE Network; major
distribution agreements; our need to continue to develop creative
and entertaining programs and events; the possibility of a decline
in the popularity of our brand of sports entertainment; the
continued importance of key performers and the services of Vincent
K. McMahon; possible adverse changes in the regulatory atmosphere
and related private sector initiatives; the highly competitive,
rapidly changing and increasingly fragmented nature of the markets
in which we operate and greater financial resources or marketplace
presence of many of our competitors; uncertainties associated with
international markets; our difficulty or inability to promote and
conduct our live events and/or other businesses if we do not comply
with applicable regulations; our dependence on our intellectual
property rights, our need to protect those rights, and the risks of
our infringement of others’ intellectual property rights; the
complexity of our rights agreements across distribution mechanisms
and geographical areas; potential substantial liability in the
event of accidents or injuries occurring during our physically
demanding events including, without limitation, claims relating to
CTE; large public events as well as travel to and from such events;
our feature film business; our expansion into new or complementary
businesses and/or strategic investments; our computer systems and
online operations; privacy norms and regulations; a possible
decline in general economic conditions and disruption in financial
markets; our accounts receivable; our revolving credit facility;
litigation; our potential failure to meet market expectations for
our financial performance, which could adversely affect our stock;
Vincent K. McMahon exercises control over our affairs, and his
interests may conflict with the holders of our Class A common
stock; a substantial number of shares are eligible for sale by the
McMahons and the sale, or the perception of possible sales, of
those shares could lower our stock price; and the relatively small
public “float” of our Class A common stock. In addition, our
dividend is dependent on a number of factors, including, among
other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow,
strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital), our
financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions
on the payment of dividends (including under our revolving credit
facility), general economic and competitive conditions and such
other factors as our Board of Directors may consider relevant.
Forward-looking statements made by the Company speak only as of the
date made and are subject to change without any obligation on the
part of the Company to update or revise them. Undue reliance should
not be placed on these statements. For more information about risks
and uncertainties associated with the Company’s business, please
refer to the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors” sections of
the Company’s SEC filings, including, but not limited to, our
annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160404006473/en/
WWEInvestors:Michael Weitz,
203-352-8642michael.weitz@wwecorp.comorLaura Kiernan,
203-328-2519laura.kiernan@wwecorp.comorMedia:Matt Altman,
203-352-1177matthew.altman@wwecorp.com
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