Major League Wrestling and WWE are heading towards a big-money match in court thanks to a California judge’s recent ruling.
According to Sportico, United States District Judge from San Jose, California Edward Davila has ruled that a complaint filed by Major League Wrestling (MLW) adequately revealed legitimate antitrust concerns over WWE’s handling of media rights and its status as a professional wrestling organization on television. Now, the case will head to discovery, which could potentially reveal insider information about the WWE’s economics and its handling of media rights.
According to Sportico, MLW accuses WWE of owning 92% of all revenue generated by professional wrestling promotions from the sale of media rights and abusing its leverage as the biggest brand in the business to keep rival companies off the platforms that its shows appear on.
MLW believes exclusivity clauses like WWE’s deals with Fox and NBCUniversal would deny it and other promotions a chance to stream their content on major streaming services. In February, The Streamable reported that despite signing a broadcast rights deal with Reelz, which is simulcast in NBCU streamer Peaco*ck, MLW’s new weekly wrestling show, “MLW Underground Wrestling” would not stream on Peaco*ck thanks to WWE’s exclusivity deal with the company. All of World Wrestling Entertainment’s major events air exclusively on Peaco*ck in the United States, and the company’s flagship show “Monday Night RAW” is broadcast weekly on the company’s USA Network cable channel.
The deal between NBCUniversal and Reelz allows for all of the latter’s programming to stream live and on-demand on Peaco*ck — except for anything MLW-related. When MLW content airs on Reelz, it is replaced with a black screen on the livestream, and you’ll find nary a mention of Alex Hammerstone or Jacob Fatu in Peaco*ck’s on-demand offerings as well.
Where Can You Watch Major League Wrestling on Reelz?
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Many pro wrestling companies stream their content on FITE, which has now become a destination of sorts for pro wrestling and combat sports fans. However, MLW seems to have its eyes on the crossover audience that WWE — and to a lesser extent, All Elite Wrestling — has captured in recent years.
In the suit, MLW also accuses WWE of pressuring Fox’s free streaming service Tubi to drop the MLW channel from its free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) platform. Fox’s broadcast network is the home for WWE’s “Friday Night Smackdown.” MLW insists that the WWE is actively working to prevent the upstart company from signing new media rights deals. MLW cites a proposed deal with VICE TV, which would have aired MLW archival content, but not any new shows limiting its ability to find new fans.
While Sportico says that Davilla did not agree with everything in the lawsuit, he saw enough to advance the case despite WWE’s opposition. Now, the case — and all of the WWE’s applicable business dealings — may be brought to light during discovery.
MLW certainly has an uphill battle to prove its case, especially now that AEW has secured multiple broadcast and streaming windows for its flagship programs like “Dynamite,” “Rampage,” and now “Collision,” evening the odds against WWE. The underdog MLW will have to pull out every move in its arsenal to leave with its hand raised high.
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