2. Streaming Media Guru
When
Matthew Singerman was hired to be the Executive Vice President of Programming and head of the WWE Network, he came to WWE with plenty of television experience: Fox News, TV Guide Network, Reelz Channel. However, the WWE network isn't a traditional television channel like HBO. It's an over-the-top streaming service more like Netflix. There's a significant difference, and this is an area where WWE could really use more expertise. WWE should concentrate on hiring talent from the major streaming media companies - Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu - and integrating their strategic expertise to help ensure that WWE Network is a success. WWE has proven time and time again that they'll lose interest in a project, if it's not commercially successful (think WWE 24/7). While the initial lures of $9.99/month PPVs and archival content have generated significant launch buzz, maintaining this project over the long haul will require a lot more finesse and marketplace understanding. Rolling out to international markets, evaluating subscription costs, gauging when to add (and remove) content -- there's a lot of variables at play which are fundamentally different than the dynamics of programming a domestic television channel. Adjusting pricing on your service is a very delicate thing. In 2011, there was
significant turmoil, subscriber loss and widespread customer dissatisfaction when Netflix attempted to raise prices and cleave their DVD and streaming services into separate entities. Conversely, 2014 news of
price increases from Amazon Prime have been generally accepted and even lauded by the press. As the WWE Network evolves, and difficult decisions that are unique to over-the-top services emerge, WWE will be well served to be staffing up on new streaming media experts instead of television dinosaurs.