Did Stephanie McMahon Hint At WWE Sale?

Bloomberg comments make headlines.

Stephanie McMahon
WWE.com

Comments made by Stephanie McMahon - seemingly relating to a possible sale of WWE - have caught the headlines this week.

The company's Chief Brand Officer is quoted as saying in Bloomberg Businessweek that her family - who have dominated the wrestling industry for decades - have "certainly thought about" interest from media giants like Walt Disney, 21st Century Fox and Verizon.

Several outlets have taken her remarks as a sign her father, the current Chief Executive Officer, is now open to offers. The 72-year-old has recently began diversifying his own business interests with the proposed relaunch of XFL, a football league whose original run ended in 2001.

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But it seems more likely that Stephanie was referring to the potential for collaboration with different content providers. WWE has been slowly moving away from traditional platforms over recent years, having scrapped one-off pay-per-views in favour of a subscription-based online streaming service.

And the company is clearly eager to explore new ways to reach its fanbase, a large (though dwindling) section of whom are drawn from the tech-savvy 18 to 34 demographic. Last month, for example, saw the launch of the intergender tag team tournament Mixed Match Challenge, an event streamed exclusively on Facebook.

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