Vince McMahon and members of senior management served as the hosts of a conference call pertaining to the 2015 fourth quarter financial report that was released on February 11, 2016. The following are the highlights of the call. Refresh the page for the latest updates.
-The call is hosted by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, WWE Chief Strategy and Financial Officer George Barrios, and WWE Investor Relations Michael Weitz.
-Vince said they produced a record year with $659 million in revenue. He touted the success of WWE on Youtube and the WWE Network. Vince said the average WWE Network subscriber watches more hours of content on the network than any cable network.
-Barrios ran through the highlights of the earnings report presentation. Barrios said they are continuing to work on network launch plans in their three remaining markets China, The Philippines, and Thailand.
-Live events profits are up 9 percent in attendance and 13 percent in ticket prices. NXT becoming a touring brand was touted as one of the factors in the increase.
-Barrios also boasted about the company’s social media success.
-Barrios stressed that WrestleMania will occur on April 3, meaning that it will fall in the second quarter rather than the first quarter as it did last year.
-WWE will release the next WWE subscriber count the day after WrestleMania.
-Once Barrios finished, they opened it up for calls.
-A caller asked about bundling the network with another property such as MLB. Barrios said it’s still early. He said they have discussions all the time and are open to all ideas as long as they make sense for the audience and the shareholders.
-A caller asked about the Royal Rumble and network retention. Barrios didn’t give specifics, but he said he feels good about where they are thus they why they felt comfortable with the guidance they gave.
-The number of injuries were brought up and how that could affect WrestleMania. “By being creative,” Vince said regarding how to work around it. He said WrestleMania will be just as awesome this year as it was last year.
-A caller asked for a sub number in India. Barrios said they wouldn’t talk about specific levels. He said they view India over the long term. He said the pay-per-views are not being played in India because of their current agreements.
-A caller asked about extending WWE beyond Youtube to other platforms. Barrios said any product that anyone is using, WWE is called because they are dominant on all of them. He said they are one of the first companies called for any video platform.
-Barrios declined to reveal how many subscribers were added specifically for WrestleMania.
-A caller asked about network incentives. Barrios said the only packaging they do is the one month free and he feels it is working.
-A caller asked if there’s any correlation between the television ratings and network subs. Barrios said it can work well together, but it’s not at the granular level in terms of one week’s rating having an impact.
-A caller asked about the new media center possibility. Barrios said they took it off the table due to the financial crisis. Barrios said that their old plans are probably no longer relevant if they decide to build one. However, he said there are no current plans for a new media center at least in 2016.
-The television ratings decrease was brought up. Vince said their numbers were down, but not as much as the average of the ratings for the television networks they are on. Vince mentioned people cutting the cord and said people consume content on their own time and they want to feed with that audience. He labeled television “old media” and said it’s no longer just about living and dying on television ratings.
-A caller asked about NXT revenues for the year. Barrios said they wouldn’t get into specifics. Shocking. He said they are thrilled about the engagement they have seen in live events, on the network, and social engagement. “We’re really psyched about it, but we’re not going to get into the revenue number.”
-The caller asked about NXT live event revenue projections in 2016. Barrios spoke about pushing it forward and said they are excited about it.
-Barrios was asked about the top five countries for the network. He praised the UK and Canada and did not get into specifics.
-Vince spoke about how there is tremendous value in providing live programming to NBCU when asked about providing content to them as well as their social platforms. Vince said they are poised to take advantage from a financial standpoint and he thinks they will be more valuable to everybody. The caller said it will be interesting. “It sure will,” Vince responded.
-A caller asked about how much content they have remaining. Barrios said he’s not sure it will all make the network, but he said they have a long way to go.
-A caller asked about making the WWE app more of a destination for their video footage because the network subscribe button is always there unlike on Youtube. Barrios said the app an important part of their strategy. He said they will continue to invest in their owned and operated.
-NXT was brought up again in terms of distribution. Barrios said it is licensed in some markets and they are still figuring out where it fits best.
-Barrios said he believes they will be in the network will be in at least two of the three remaining markets if not all three this year.
-Barrios said 20-25 percent of the network viewing is for the pay-per-view content.
-A caller asked when the India television deals expire so the pay-per-views can go to the network. Barrios said they don’t want to get into specifics.
-The network launching in Japan was brought up and the acquisition of New Japan Pro Wrestling talent. Barrios said Japan falls into normal course. He said it’s a great market, but spoke more about bigger markets.
-With no further questions, they ended the call.
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