L. Anne Carrington  

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• Archived Blog Post

  Date / Time: 7/29/2009 3:30 PM UTC

  The Economy and Wrestling
  

  Like anything else in our current economy, even wrestling has been affected.
  
  It isn't rocket science; all one needs to do is look at WWE's current stock price and the batch of recent talent releases. Throw in the dismal TV ratings and lagging PPV buyrates as of late and there it is spelled out in black and white.
  
  All of this isn’t new. Many companies have downsized by giving employees the pink slip, particularly ones that have been considered "dead wood." It's pretty much the same thing in this case.
  
  What is confusing, however, in light of cutting talent, why are some new people being brought in? Why not just use the current people that are already there instead of spending more money signing people that may or may not end up being used anyway?
  
  There's also the factor of the same current talent being used over and over with the same feuds being recycled. While this is fine once in awhile, when it is done a little too often, it's only logical that fan interest will begin to wane and they will turn their attention elsewhere.
  
  While wrestling won't very likely go away altogether, there is no question that the economy has begun to take its toll on it; not only within the company itself, but also among its fans.
  
  Aside of what could perhaps be described as lack of interest in current story lines and feuds, fans may also had to cut back attending shows and ordering PPV's from their own budgets because of their own rising household costs taking priority.
  
  Ordering a PPV isn't going to do anyone much good if there isn't electric in the house in order to run the TV to view it on, or if there isn't a house to put that TV in if the mortgage or rent isn't paid.
  
  I know a lot of people tend to blame creative or bad booking or whatever else, and as much as they have played a factor in the product not holding much fan interest lately (in the US anyway; I can't speak for overseas audiences). Ratings may be down out of boredom, but it's more likely live show attendance and PPV buyrates are down because of the economy itself.
  
  Some have suggested it, but cutting ticket prices just wouldn't be feasible; out of those costs, expenses we don't think about when we purchase that ticket have to be paid: the talent, the event staff, etc. You get the idea. If a ticket price was cut, it may be great for us, but others would lose money in the long run. Either way, it's a lose-lose situation.
  
  I will agree, however, that the PPV costs are a bit insane, especially when some parts of the world, they can be obtained for even less or even no charge at all. I can see paying a bit more for WrestleMania, being it's the Super Bowl of wrestling, but as for the others, shelling out $40 (USD) or a little more gets a little ridiculous, especially when they are running every three or four weeks.
  
  Again, the average fan has to budget and cut back somewhere, and if we are going to purchase these, give us a good reason to put out that kind of money, as that same $40 can get me a 50 pound bucket of cat litter, a 48-can case of Friskies cat food, and a 25 pound bag of dry cat food at Sam's Club for my three cats and last me longer than three weeks.
  
  Good or bad, the economy affects us all, and pending a miracle, things may not be changing very much in the financial sense–even in wrestling.
  
  We may as well grit our teeth and enjoy what is out there while we can. Besides, we need something to take our mind off economic troubles, correct?
  
  
  
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