10 Ways WrestleMania 36 Will Shape WWE’s Future
3. Future TV Deals
Not caring about television ratings is one thing; saying that they don't matter is another.
The first is subjective, so it's fine. Numbers don't need to impact your fandom. If you aren't interested in viewerships, there's nothing wrong with discarding them.
To claim the aren't important is to disagree with every decision-maker who matters in professional wrestling, however. Declining steeper than average cable figures they be, but wrestling's ratings are still the key metric considered in negotiations. Objectively, they matter, and that isn't changing until television isn't WWE's biggest money-maker.
Vince McMahon's current deals with USA Network and FOX have essentially made his promotion failure-proof, though things may not be so easy the next time he heads to the negotiating table - particularly if there's no clear recovery from this lockdown-induced slump. It's something that wouldn't take effect for a few years from now, but definitely worthy of consideration. The next deal is always as important as the current one.
WWE is a refined, effective, capitalist machine with an incredible aptitude for squeezing increasing amounts of money from a shrinking fanbase. They'll be fine, though future contracts may not be so lucrative.