SEScoops

Category: WWE

  • Chris Jericho Hosting VH1 Metal Awards Show

    Chris Jericho – Fozzy Frontman

    Cable network VH1 sent out the following press release over the weekend, announcing that WWE superstar Chirs Jericho will be hosting the second annual Revolver Golden Golds Awards Show on Saturday, May 22nd. The show will honor excellence in the field of heavy metal music.

    VH1 Classic is Honoring The Best in Rock and Heavy Metal With The Second Annual ‘Revolver Golden Gods Awards’

    VH1 Classic will recognize the most famous and decorated rock stars on the planet at the 2nd annual “Revolver Golden Gods Awards” on Saturday, May 22 at 10PM.

    Celebrating the best in hard rock and heavy metal, the “Revolver Golden Gods Awards” is a television event die hard music fans will not forget. Never-before-seen collaborations by iconic music legends Slash, Lemmy Kilmister and Dave Grohl performing “Ace of Spades” and other blistering performances by Rob Zombie, Zakk Wylde, Fear Factory, As I Lay Dying and Posehn make this a heavy-hitting concert and award show not to be missed.

    Hosted by Chris Jericho (WWE, Fozzy) and Andrew W.K., the show also welcomes special appearances by iconic rock and metal artists including: Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Halford, Alice in Chains, Slayer and more. VH1 Classic’s own “That Metal Show” hosts Eddie Trunk, Don Jamieson and Jim Florentine present the “Revolver Golden Gods Award” for “Album of the Year.” Rock legend Ozzy Osbourne presents Rob Halford with the Golden God Award, while Foo Fighters’ David Grohl presents the ultimate honor of a Lifetime Achievement Award to Motorhead’s Lemmy.

    Winners and presenters featured in the 2nd annual “Revolver Golden Gods Awards” include:

    — Golden God Award: Rob Halford (presented by Ozzy Osbourne)
    — Epiphone Best Guitarist Award: Zakk Wylde (presented by Kerry King and
    Jeff Hanneman of Slayer)
    — Lifetime Achievement Award: Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead (presented by
    Dave Grohl)
    — Album of the Year Award: Alice In Chains (presented by Eddie Trunk,
    Jim Florentine and Don Jamieson of VH1 Classic’s “That Metal Show”)
    — Best Vocalist: Ronnie James Dio (presented by Jerry Cantrell and Mike
    Inez)

    VH1 Classic: Launched in May 2000, VH1 Classic is a 24-hour network that present videos, concerts and music specials all day long, featuring the best of rock, soul and pop artists from the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90s including The Beatles, The Stones, Tina Turner, Led Zeppelin, Marvin Gaye, The Who, Stevie Wonder, The Police, Madonna and many more. Learn more at VH1Classic.com.

    About Revolver Magazine: Revolver is the No. 1 hard-rock and heavy-metal destination in the world. In print for 10 years, the magazine takes readers into the studio, onto the stage, and behind the scenes, providing in-depth information, mind-blowing original photography, and hilarious insights they can’t find anywhere else. The home of The Hottest Chicks in Metal, Revolver also covers horror movies, mixed martial arts, tattoos, action sports, and more. Every year Revolver throws the premiere U.S. hard-rock and metal awards show, the Revolver Golden Gods. Highlights of this year’s show will be broadcast on VH1 Classic on May 22 and feature appearances by Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Halford, Dave Grohl, Slash, Lemmy Kilmister, Rob Zombie, Alice Cooper and many others. Revolver sponsors over 20 hard-rock tours each year, including the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival. Its website (www.revolvermag.com) features exclusive interviews, music and video, photo shoot outtakes, and contests.

  • Melina Out Several More Months, McIntyre’s Suspension

    – Melina noted on Twitter that her physical therapy is going well but she doesn’t know how much longer she will be out of the ring. Her trainers feel it should take 3-4 more months to fully heal but her doctor has said she could return in late June or July. As always, visit PWTweets.com to follow 80+ wrestlers & Divas on Twitter.

    — Continuing a pattern from previous weeks, Drew McIntyre attacked Matt Hardy on Friday’s episode of SmackDown. When he refused to stop, he received escalating punishments from SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long: a suspension, being stripped of the championship, and finally being (kayfabe) fired. His bio has since been removed from the Smackdown roster page on WWE.com. He was not legitimately suspended as he worked the company’s tour of Mexico, which concluded this afternoon in Monterrey. Interestingly, he was defending the Intercontinental Championship on the tour even though he had been stripped of the title at Tuesday’s SmackDown taping. Even his peers are unsure of his status other than it being some sort of an angle, reports f4wonline.com.

    — Due to Raw taking place tonight in the Mellon Arena, the venue will not be airing the Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Montreal Canadians Stanley Cup playoff game on the big screens. Road games are traditionally shown inside the arena.

  • Triple H Puts Over “WWE PG,” Buzz Aldrin Confirmed

    The New York Times ran a story over the weekend confirming that United States astronaut Buzz Aldrin will be serve as Raw guest host on May 17 when the show emanates from Toronto. On July 20, 1969, Aldrin was the second person to set foot on the Moon, following Neil Armstrong.

    The feature story on WWE’s guest host concept including interviews with Ryan Phillippe and Maria Menounos, as well as Triple H addressing the company’s decision to make its product more family-friendly. “The Game” said he wouldn’t want his kids to see the antics he pulled off during “The Attitude Era.”

    “I’ve got young kids,” he said. “Years ago, we were what we were, and I certainly wouldn’t want to have my young kids watch that product. We’ve evolved.”

  • False Promotion Of The Great Khali Sparks Riot In India

    Indian fans rioted at Tau Devi Lal Stadium today when The Great Khali failed to appear as advertised at a joint charity wrestling and fashion event, “War of Champions.” Organizers of the show were advertising the WWE star for the event despite knowing in advance he would not be appearing.

    “We had clarified verbally to the organizers about ten days back that Khali would not be able to attend the event and we also had returned them the money,” said Khali spokesman Amit Swami. “Despite that the organizers went on to publicize Khali’s supposed appearance for reasons best known to them.”

    The event’s promoters later claimed that Khali did not appear at the venue due to a contractual obligation with a sports channel, reportedly barred him making the appearance.

    Police arrested one of the event’s organizers and booked him on charges of “cheating and breaching the trust of spectators,” citing thousands of tickets were sold to see Khali and the police were deceived into believing he would be appearing.

    To read the article in its entirety, click here.

  • Early WWE RAW Preview: Flavor Flav Guest Hosts

    Monday’s WWE RAW takes place from the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, PA.

    Rapper turned reality television star Flava Flav will be this week’s guest hsot.

    The only thing announced for the show so far is that WWE Champion John Cena will announce the stipulation for his WrestleMania re-match against Batista at Over The Limit on May 23.

    With Batista expected to be leaving WWE in a few weeks, it’s likely that Cena will pick a “Loser Leaves WWE” stipulation.

    Locally, John Cena vs. Batista is being advertised as the dark match main event.

    WWE’s first Unified Tag champions Carlito and Primo Colon reunited on last week’s WWE Superstars show, so we could see program with the Hart Dynasty kick off this week as well.

  • The Rock Getting Fast & Furious? Dos Caras, Colons

    – DeadlineHollywood.com reports that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson may be joining the cast of the upcoming Fast & Furious movie, the fifth film in the series.

    – WWE has had Dos Caras work without his traditional Mexican mask since working dark matches at recent live events. There was concern that Dos may wrestle for the first time ever in Mexico without a mask on the current Mexican tour but that didn’t happen. WWE allowed Dos to keep his mask on as he defeated William Regal at the RAW live event last night in Monterrey. Dos had been working as a heel on WWE live events but worked as a babyface at last night’s show in Mexico.

    – WWE will be releasing future movies on DVD shortly after they end in theaters. Vince McMahon said yesterday in the conference call that WWE is looking to get the benefit of promoting the DVD and the theatrical release at once. Overseas, movies will be released on DVD the same day as they come out in theaters but it will be a wait of a few weeks here in the States.

    – In case you missed it on last night’s WWE Superstars, Carlito and Primo Colon are back together as a tag team. The first-ever WWE Unified Tag Team Champions are set to feud with the current Champions, The Hart Dynasty.

  • New Details On The Possible WWE Cable Network

    Variety reports that Vince McMahon said yesterday that they are pursuing the WWE cable channel harder than ever and are looking to launch it as early as this year. WWE is currently talking to cable providers about carrying the network. The WWE network is being planned to be made up of a “variety of shows that don’t revolve around the kind of in-ring wrestling that it currently airs each week on USA Network, Syfy, MyNetwork TV and WGN.”

    WWE is hoping that the network will serve as a way to appeal to a broader audience than they currently attract. Vince told the shareholders: “Many times, they are the gatekeepers of the future on whether they encourage kids to watch our program. We haven’t appealed in terms of our product to our older audience as our younger audience.”

  • *Spoilers* WWE SmackDown Tapings Results For Tonight

    SmackDown *SPOILERS*

    Dark Match:

    * Vance Archer & Curt Hawkins b. Two local workers named Jason & John.

    WWE SmackDown, Airing Friday:

    * The show opens with a recap of Big Show’s feud with World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger. Swagger will take on Kane later tonight.

    * Matt Hardy comes out with a mic. He cuts a promo on WWE Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre. McIntyre hits the ring and things get physical. Referees and security break it up as Teddy Long comes out. Long orders Drew to stop. He doesn’t and Long suspends him but that doesn’t stop him. Long strips him of the Intercontinental Championship but that doesn’t stop him either. Long tells Drew he’s fired which prompts McIntyre to get in his face. McIntyre is escorted out of the building by referees.

    * Backstage, Teddy Long is interviewed by Josh Mathews. Long says he doesn’t know Matt Hardy’s status, what to say about Drew McIntyre or what to do about the Intercontinental Championship.

    * MVP b. Luke Gallows w/CM Punk & Serena. Rey Mysterio came out of the crowd during the bout and distracted Gallows which allowed MVP to hit the Complete Shot and get the pinfall win.

    * CM Punk cuts a promo on Rey Mysterio. Mysterio asks Punk where the hooded attacker is but Punk acts like he knows nothing about it. Mysterio still wants to shave Punk’s head. Mysterio suggests one more match, if he loses he’ll join the Straight Edge Society. If Punk loses, Mysterio gets to shave his head bald. Mysterio says he’ll join the Straight Edge Society tonight if Punk saves his head tonight. Punk won’t agree to it despite a chant from the crowd. Punk puts over his hair as a symbol of purity. The segment concludes with Mysterio promising to put an end to the Straight Edge Society.

    * Layla & Michelle McCool w/Vickie Guerrero b. Tiffany & Kelly Kelly when Layla got the pin.

    * Teddy Long announces a tournament for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. It begins tonight and there are two matches from it tonight. Christian vs. Cody Rhodes and Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler. The winners will face off next week for the title.

    * Kofi Kingston b. Dolph Ziggler to advance to the finals of the WWE Intercontinental Championship tournament that will take place next week.

    * Christian w/Heath Slater b. Cody Rhodes to advance to the finals of the finals of the WWE Intercontinental Championship tournament that will take place next week.

    * Kofi Kingston will face Christian next week for the WWE Intercontinental Championship

    * World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger comes out with a mic. He puts himself over, delivering more facts about himself. He talks down Big Show before Kane comes out for their match. Big Show comes out and goes to the announce table for commentary. Kane b. World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger when Swagger was disqualified for throwing Kane into the unprotected turnbuckle. After the match, Swagger attacks Kane before Big Show gets involved. Kane ends up taking out Swagger and Show chokeslams him through the announce table. Show poses with the World Heavyweight Championship belt to end the show.

  • Recap From WWE’s Investor Conference Call

    After WWE released its First Quarter Financial Results earlier today, the company held its quarterly conference call. Here are some highlights from that call…

    – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Vince McMahon, Chief Financial Officer George Barrios and Chief Operating Officer Donna Goldsmith were on hand for today’s conference call.

    – Vince started off with the good news that the profit margin for the quarter was one of the highest in company history. The bad news was that WrestleMania dropped in buys. McMahon did admit that the event may not have been “exactly what everyone wanted to see,” but also said that communal viewing of the event could have hurt it as well.

    – The move of Smackdown to SyFy was discussed, which he felt was a good move and could add to the international business growth. He is also happy about the new toy line from Mattel. Chief Financial Officer George Barrios did a quick review of the First Quarter Financials, and then we had some question and answer time.

    – On WrestleMania dropping buys, Vince said that he felt the branding of last year’s event as the “25th Anniversary” created nostalgia. WrestleMania did add greatly to the quarterly numbers, but was not quite what they hoped for. It was down 12% from last year’s event. He noted that, “it was a good attraction, not a great attraction and sometimes you just don’t give them great attractions all the time. It’s the creative process, and that’s the process we’re in.”

    – As for Phoenix as a host city, he felt that the city out performed as the host, and said all involved should be applauded.

    – Vince would not blame the economy for the drop in WrestleMania, stating that too many use that as an excuse. He related that many promoters would always make excuses for not drawing, with he exception of Bobo Brazil, because he did not believe in excuses. Bobo would say that you just can’t blame it on anything else people may have decided to go with that night.

    – Chief Financial Officer George Barrios and Chief Operating Officer Donna Goldsmith said that they are constantly evaluating how many PPVs and live events that the company runs. They did note that there are less PPVs this year as opposed to last year.

    – They discussed the WWE Studios projects, noting that they were aiming for projects in the $5 million range from now on.

    – On the decline in video game sales, they said that it was due to “the changeover in game platforms.”

    – Vince noted that the Rumble and Elimination Chamber did increase buys, and was asked if competition (UFC 111 on the same weekend) hurt WrestleMania. Vince stated, “We’re not sure if it has or not, you’re talking about two relatively different audiences, completely. The UFC audience, which I guess is what you are referring to, is more of a boxing audience than an entertainment thing, like we are. Nonetheless, there has been some of that, but from a scheduling standpoint, we can’t control that. Going forward, I don’t see any on the schedule at the moment.”

    – The final thing discussed was the WWE Cable Network. They have the model set, and are now going to cable providers to see what the interest in it is.

  • WrestleMania, Royal Rumble & Elimination Chamber PPV Buyrates

    As part of WWE’s Q1 2010 financial report, in which WWE achieved operating income of $37.3 million and net income of $24.7 million off revenue of $138.7 million, the company also announced the pay-per-view buyrates for Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 26.

    While the Rumble and Chamber events improved over their counterparts last year, WrestleMania 26 declined from last year’s already-disappointing number.

    Royal Rumble 2010 drew 462,000 buys, up from last year’s 450,000.

    Elimination Chamber did 272,000 buys, down from No Way Out 2009, which did 285,000.

    WrestleMania XXVI drew 885,000 buys, down from last year’s 960,000. The strong UFC 111 pay-per-view, which aired the night before WrestleMania, will likely receive some credit for adversely impacting the WM26 buyrate.

    WrestleMania’s popularity has been eroding sharply over the past few years, despite the fact that WWE claims the decreased buyrates are due to more fans gathering together for “PPV parties.” The past 4 years WrestleMania buyrates have been:

    • 2007 – 1.18 million
    • 2008 – 1.06 million
    • 2009 – 0.96 million
    • 2010 – 0.89 million

    It’s interesting to note that despite WWE’s price increase to $44.95, and the increase in buys for Rumble and Chamber, revenue was slightly down compared to last year. The January and February shows garnered $13.6 million in 2009 and $13.4 million in 2010. This can be attributed to a relative increase in international buys, for which WWE does not receive as much revenue.

  • WWE Releases Q1 2010 Financial Results (PDF)

    WWE announced the following financial results for the first quarter of 2010 this morning.

    You can view a PDF file of the earnings report by clicking here (PDF).

    STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. today announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2010. Revenues totaled $138.7 million as compared to $107.8 million in the prior year quarter. Operating income was $37.3 million as compared to $16.7 million in the prior year quarter. Net income was $24.7 million, or $0.33 per share, as compared to $10.3 million, or $0.14 per share in the prior year quarter. There are several items that impact comparability, primarily the timing of WrestleMania® XXVI. Excluding these items, revenues totaled $109.9 million, adjusted operating income was $22.6 million and adjusted net income was $14.7 million, or $0.20 per share.

    “In the first quarter, we delivered significant growth in earnings and profitability, reaching our highest operating margin in our recent history,” stated Vince McMahon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “WrestleMania XXVI attracted more than 70,000 fans and contributed profits of over $13 million for the second consecutive year. Looking ahead, our faith in the future is strengthened by the ongoing power of our brands, the strength of our partnerships and our ongoing focus on operating efficiency. We remain confident that we can achieve our targeted earnings growth and drive greater profits.” As previously communicated, the WWE business outlook targets average annual earnings growth of 15% to 20% over the 2009-2012 period.

    Comparability of Results
    WrestleMania XXVI occurred on March 28, 2010, and consequently, is included in our first fiscal quarter financial results. However, WrestleMania XXV occurred on April 5, 2009 and was included as part of our second quarter results in 2009. WrestleMania XXVI contributed approximately $28.8 million of revenues, $13.1 million of profit contribution ($8.8 million, net of tax) and $0.12 of EPS from across our various business lines in the current quarter. The Q1 2010 results also reflect an infrastructure tax credit which reduced depreciation and amortization expense by $1.6 million. In addition, Q1 2009 results included approximately $2.2 million of restructuring related expenses associated with our headcount reduction that occurred in January 2009. For comparative purposes, schedules showing the Adjusted Operating Income, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Net Income, excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI and these items, have been provided in the supplemental information included in this release.

    Results by Business Segment
    Revenues from North America and outside North America increased 28% and 33%, respectively, led by our Live and Televised Entertainment segment. Excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI, revenues from North America decreased 3% and outside North America increased 19%. In addition, there was an approximate $2.1 million favorable impact from foreign exchange rates.

    The following tables reflect net revenues by segment and by region for the three months ended March 31, 2010 and March 31, 2009. (Dollars in millions)

    Live and Televised Entertainment
    Revenues from our Live and Televised Entertainment businesses were $98.2 million for the current quarter as compared to $64.1 million in the prior year quarter. The 53% increase in revenues primarily reflects the impact of WrestleMania XXVI as previously discussed. Excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI, revenues from our Live and Televised Entertainment businesses increased 9% to $69.7 million.

    Live Event revenues were $26.0 million as compared to $18.0 million in the prior year quarter, primarily due to the timing of WrestleMania XXVI. WrestleMania XXVI generated approximately $6.7 million in revenue in the current quarter.

    There were 75 total events during the current quarter as compared to 87 events in the prior year quarter, primarily due to touring logistics. There were four international events performed in both the current and prior year quarter.

    North American events generated $23.5 million of revenues from 71 events as compared to $17.0 million from 83 events in the prior year quarter. North American average attendance increased 33% to approximately 8,100 from 6,100 in the prior year quarter. The average ticket price for North American events was $38.64 in the current quarter as compared to $33.54 in the prior year. Excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI in the current quarter, revenues were $16.8 million, North American average attendance was 7,300 and average ticket price was $32.47.

    Pay-Per-View revenues were $32.4 million as compared to $13.6 million in the prior year quarter. There were three pay-per-view events produced in the current year quarter as compared to two in the prior year quarter. Excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI in the current quarter, pay-per-view revenues totaled approximately $13.4 million.

    Beginning in January 2010, the suggested domestic retail price of non-WrestleMania pay-per-view events increased $5.00 to $44.95.

    The details for the number of buys (in 000s) are as follows:

    Venue Merchandise revenues were $6.5 million as compared to $4.6 million in the prior year quarter. The increase is due to higher per capita sales of $10.33 in the current quarter as compared to $9.29 in the prior year quarter. Excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI, revenues were $4.9 million and per capita sales was $8.41 in the current quarter.

    Television Rights Fees revenues were $29.4 million as compared to $24.9 million in the prior year quarter. This increase was primarily due to license fees received from our new WWE Superstars television show and contractual increases from our existing programs.

    WWE Classics on Demandâ„¢ revenues were $1.3 million as compared to $1.5 million in the prior year quarter, primarily due to a decline in domestic subscribers.

    Consumer Products
    Revenues from our Consumer Products businesses were $30.7 million versus $33.1 million in the prior year quarter. Consumer Products revenues declined 7% primarily due to a decline in our Home Video business.

    Home Video net revenues were $7.6 million as compared to $9.2 million in the prior year quarter. This decrease reflects a reduction in the sale of new releases as shipments declined 11% to approximately 813,000 units in the current period. In addition, revenues were negatively impacted by a 6% decline in average price per unit to approximately $13.75 and lower sell-through rates.

    Licensing revenues were $19.9 million as compared to $19.8 million in the prior year quarter, reflecting additional sales of toys and novelties partially offset by lower video game sales. Toys and novelties increased by approximately $0.5 million and $0.6 million, respectively, while revenues related to video games declined by $1.0 million in the current quarter.

    Magazine publishing net revenues were $2.8 million as compared to $3.5 million in the prior year quarter, primarily reflecting lower sell-through rates in the current quarter.

    Digital Media
    Revenues from our Digital Media related businesses were $6.4 million as compared to $6.9 million in the prior year, representing a 7% decrease.

    WWE.com revenues were $3.4 million as compared to $3.9 million in the prior year quarter, primarily reflecting a decline in wireless and online advertising revenues.

    WWEShop revenues were $3.0 million in both the current and prior year quarter. The number of orders increased by 3% to approximately 62,000 which was offset by a 4% decline in the average revenue per order to $47.77 as compared to the prior year quarter.

    WWE Studios
    During the current quarter, we recorded revenue of $3.4 million related to previously released films as compared to $3.7 million in the prior year quarter. We participate in revenues generated by the distribution of these films after the print, advertising and distribution costs incurred by our distributors have been recouped and the results have been reported to us. Accordingly, we have not recorded revenues for 12 Rounds or The Marine 2.

    Profit Contribution (Net revenues less cost of revenues)
    Profit contribution increased to $65.0 million in the current quarter as compared to $51.4 million in the prior year quarter, reflecting approximately $13.1 million in WrestleMania XXVI related profit in the current quarter. Gross profit contribution margin remained essentially unchanged at approximately 47% as compared to 48% in the prior year quarter, reflecting efficiencies in our Live and Televised Entertainment segment offset by a decline in our Consumer Products segment. The efficiencies in the Live and Televised Entertainment segment were led by sustained cost reductions in marketing and TV production. The decline in the Consumer Products segment was primarily due to decreases in our Home Video business. Excluding the impact of WrestleMania XXVI in the current quarter, profit was essentially flat as compared to the prior year quarter and contribution margin was 47%.

    Selling, general and administrative expenses
    SG&A expenses were $25.8 million for the current quarter as compared to $30.9 million in the prior year quarter, reflecting decreases in staff related expenses, legal and professional fees and bad debt expense. Excluding items that impact comparability, SG&A expenses declined 10% to $25.8 million in the current quarter from $28.7 million in the prior year quarter.

    Depreciation and amortization
    Depreciation and amortization expense was $1.9 million for the current quarter as compared to $3.8 million in the prior year quarter, reflecting a $1.6 million benefit from the recognition of an infrastructure tax credit received in the current quarter. Excluding items that impact comparability, depreciation and amortization expense was $3.5 million in the current quarter as compared to $3.8 million in the prior year quarter.

    EBITDA
    EBITDA was approximately $39.2 million in the current quarter as compared to $20.5 million in the prior year quarter. Excluding the impact of items affecting comparability, adjusted EBITDA was $26.1 million as compared to $22.8 million in the prior year quarter.

    Investment and Other (Expense) Income
    The decline in investment income of $0.1 million in the current quarter reflects lower interest rates. Other expense of $1.0 million, as compared to other expense of $1.3 million in the prior year quarter, reflects changes in the revaluation of warrants held in certain licensees, partially offset by increased foreign exchange losses.

    Effective tax rate
    In the current quarter, the effective tax rate was 33% as compared to 35% in the prior year quarter. The decrease in tax rate year over year was primarily driven by increased benefits from Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 199 related to qualified domestic production activities.

    Cash Flows
    Net cash provided by operating activities was $38.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2010 as compared to $47.3 million in the prior year period. This decrease was driven by the timing of WrestleMania XXVI, feature film investments and changes in working capital, including changes in the Company’s tax position.

    Additional Information
    Additional business metrics are made available to investors on a monthly basis on our corporate website – corporate.wwe.com. Note: World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. will host a conference call on May 6, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. ET to discuss the Company’s earnings results for the first quarter of 2010. All interested parties can access the conference call by dialing 888-647-2706 (conference ID: WWE). Please reserve a line 15 minutes prior to the start time of the conference call. A presentation that will be referenced during the call can be found at the Company web site at corporate.wwe.com. A replay of the call will be available approximately three hours after the conference call concludes, and can be accessed at corporate.wwe.com.

    World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., a publicly traded company ( NYSE : WWE – News), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly, PG content across all of its platforms including television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 145 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 500 million homes worldwide. The Company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, London, Shanghai, Tokyo and Toronto.

    Trademarks: All WWE programming, talent names, images, likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves, trademarks, copyrights and logos are the exclusive property of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.

    Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include risks relating to maintaining and renewing key agreements, including television distribution agreements; the need for continually developing creative and entertaining programming; the continued importance of key performers and the services of Vincent McMahon; the conditions of the markets in which we compete; acceptance of the Company’s brands, media and merchandise within those markets; uncertainties relating to regulatory and litigation matters; risks resulting from the highly competitive nature of our markets; the importance of protecting our intellectual property and complying with the intellectual property rights of others; risks associated with producing live events both domestically and internationally; uncertainties associated with international markets; risks relating to our film business and any new business initiative which we may undertake; risks relating to the large number of shares of common stock controlled by members of the McMahon family; and other risks and factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition, our dividend is significant and is dependent on a number of factors, including, among other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital), our financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends, general economic and competitive conditions and such other factors as our Board of Directors may consider relevant, including a waiver by the McMahon family of a portion of the dividends.




    Non-GAAP Measure:
    We define Adjusted Operating Income, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Net Income as Operating Income, EBITDA and Net Income adjusted for significant non-recurring events that affect comparability. The schedule above adjusts for a one-time restructuring charge, the timing difference of WrestleMania and a non-recurring infrastructure tax credit. Although these metrics are not recognized measures of performance under U.S. GAAP, Adjusted Operating Income and Adjusted EBITDA are presented for comparative purposes of the Company’s normalized performance. Adjusted Operating Income and Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as an alternative to net income, cash flows from operations or any other indicator of World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.’s performance or liquidity, determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP.


    Supplemental Information:
    Net income per share of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock is computed in accordance with a two-class method of earnings allocation. Any undistributed earnings for each period are allocated to each class of common stock based on the proportionate share of the amount of cash dividends that each class is entitled to receive. There were no undistributed earnings for the three months ended March 31, 2009.

    EBITDA is defined as net income before investment, interest and other expense/income, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. The Company’s definition of EBITDA does not adjust its U.S. GAAP basis earnings for the amortization of Feature Film production assets. Although it is not a recognized measure of performance under U.S. GAAP, EBITDA is presented because it is a widely accepted financial indicator of a company’s performance. The Company uses EBITDA to measure its own performance and to set goals for operating managers. EBITDA should not be considered as an alternative to net income, cash flows from operations or any other indicator of World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.’s performance or liquidity, determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

    We define Free Cash Flow as net cash provided by operating activities less cash used for capital expenditures. Although it is not a recognized measure of liquidity under U.S. GAAP, Free Cash Flow provides useful information regarding the amount of cash our continuing business is generating after capital expenditures, available for reinvesting in the business and for payment of dividends.

  • Update On Batista’s Status, Triple H Advertised For Show, More

    — According to those close to Batista, it is not 100% certain that he will be leaving World Wrestling Entertainment, although it is believed that Over the Limit will be his final show.

    He was said to be furious that a film project initially based around him was taken from him, particularly since it was at the last minute. He is listening to outside offers and it should be noted that there is interest on the part of TNA. However, the belief is that it is highly unlikely “The Animal” would jump ship to the competition since they would never be able to offer him anything close to what he’s making in WWE, which is in the neighborhood of several million dollars per year.

    — Triple H is currently being advertised for a live Raw show taking place on May 31st in Austin, Texas. A match pitting Triple H, Randy Orton and John Cena and The Miz, Big Show and Sheamus is being advertised. However, this will ultimately change considering Big Show is no longer a heel.

    — Brett DiBiase, who was scheduled to be called up alongside Joe Hennig to be part of a heel trio on Raw with his brother Ted, suffered a knee injury last Thursday at a Florida Championship Wrestling event in Tampa. He was wrestling Hennig.

    source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

  • Finlay Dropped From Active Roster, Backstage Report On NXT

    — Though he’s still listed on the SmackDown roster page on WWE.com, Finlay is no longer listed on the company’s depth chart as an active performer. The reason for this is because he’s not scheduled to wrestle any longer. Vince McMahon decreed removing Finlay from the talent roster because he felt he was too old — 52 years old. He will however remain with the company as an agent.

    — It was noted that “people who knew what was good for them” knew not to bring up during creative meetings how on last week’s episode of NXT, the Rookie winning the challenge would get a chance to wrestle a Pro, and then on Monday’s Raw, two Rookies who didn’t win the challenge ended up with higher profile appearances wrestling Pros.

    — Apparently, an upcoming SmackDown taping set for Fresno, California will be taking place on a Wednesday as the event is listed for Aug. 18.

    source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

  • Mick Foley Calls Out Triple H For Making Fun of Lilian Garcia

    TNA star Mick Foley is calling out WWE superstar Triple H for his “shallow” and “mean” joke about Lilian Garcia’s appearance on RAW two weeks ago.

    Garcia returned to WWE for one night to guest ring announce when the RAW crew was stranded in Europe. During the opening segment of the show, Triple H had a microphone and went over to her and said, “Even Lillian Garcia. If Lillian wants to come back here for night to the WWE just to horse around, she can do it.” After Triple H’s remarks, Jerry Lawler make a horse sound on commentary. Triple H’s “horsing around” comment reportedly a reference to a backstage joke about Lilian that her face resembles that of a horse.

    Foley wrote on his MySpace.com blog that Triple H’s joke was the latest incident in a pattern of cruel on-air behavior from Vince McMahon’s son in law:

    “Why does someone like Triple H, one of the most talented, well paid guys in the business, do something so shallow and mean? Why would a multi-millionaire, with millions of fans around the world, feel the need (several times over the years) to say something that is only meant to hurt? I don’t get it. I don’t get why it’s done, I don’t get why it’s condoned, I don’t get what possible satisfaction anyone involved gets from demeaning someone like Lillian Garcia. I just don’t get it.”

  • Beth Phoenix Reportedly Injured At SmackDown Tapings

    WWE Women’s champion Beth Phoenix was reportedly injured at Tuesday’s Smackdown TV tapings during a match taped for Superstars.

    Phoenix was working with Rosa Mendes in a singles match and reportedly went down with an injury. The match was ended abruptly and the referee did the “X” sign over his head.

    DivaDirt.com reports Phoenix was seen on crutches backstage after her match.

    This morning, Phoenix posted the following message on Twitter, indicating her “injury” may have just been a false alarm:

    “Thank you for the concerned messages…I am 100% just fine and as always in Glamtastic Fighting Form!!”

    Visit PWTweets.com to follow 80+ wrestlers & divas on Twitter.

  • *Spoiler* Tag Team Reunites At Superstars Tapings

    Carlito & Primo Colon

    WWE’s first Unified Tag Team Champions – Carlito and Primo Colon – are back together, as of Tuesday’s WWE Superstars tapings.

    Carlito fought Primo in a match that went to a no contest after Carlito refused to finish his brother off. Seven minutes into the match, Carlito was going for his Backstabber finisher but instead dropped his brother and grabbed a microphone from ringside. Carlito said the fans don’t care about him and his brother anymore and they’d love to see the two of them destroy each other. Carlito said there will be no more of that – and the Colon boys hugged and left the ring together  Carlito’s NXT Rookie Michael Tarver was at ringside and didn’t seem too happy about the reunion.

    WWE has been planning to turn the Colon brothers heel and have them feud with The Hart Dynasty for the WWE Unified Tag Team Titles. It’s also expected that their cousin, Tito (Orlando) Colon, will be called up from developmental soon to join the Colon brothers.

  • Ratings Are In For WWE RAW & TNA iMPACT! (5/3)

    The rating are in for Monday night May 3rd, the “final battle” in the second Monday Night War.

    The final Monday night episode of TNA iMPACTscored an 0.78 rating – up from last week’s 0.5 but the lowest rating for a live Monday night.

    WWE’s Monday Night RAW with Wayne Brady as guest host and The Cutting Edge as the main event scored a 3.05 cable rating with hours of 2.9 and 3.2.

    Stay tuned for more ratings data from last night’s shows.

  • Bret Hart Leaving WWE, Cena vs. Batista Stipulation & More

    – WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart appeared on the “Right After Wrestling” Sirius XM satellite radio show last night and announced that his last scheduled date with WWE is the May 17th commercial-free Monday Night RAW from Toronto, Canada. As noted before, this show is being built around Bret’s WWE return to Canada and it looks like it will be his farewell, unless they can come up with a storyline to keep him around. You can listen to Bret Hart’s appearance on Right After Wrestling by clicking here (MP3).

    – WWE will tape tonight’s NXT and this week’s Friday Night SmackDown tonight from the North Charleston Coliseum in North Charleston, South Carolina. After earning the right to face a WWE superstar on tonight’s show, NXT rookie David Otunga selected R-Truth as his opponent for tonight. No matches have been announced yet for SmackDown.

    – The official theme song for WWE’s Over the Limit pay-per-view is the song “Crash” by the band Fit for Rivals.

    – A stipulation for John Cena’s match with Batista at Over The Limit will be announced in the next week or so.

    – The WWE production guy in the backstage segment on RAW tonight with Edge was actually WWE writer Brian Gewirtz.

  • Fan Arrested For Making Terrorist Threats Against WWE

    Zayr Peygumbari

    The Connecticut Post reports that WWE fan Zavr Peygumbari, of Brooklyn, New York, was arrested last week after he called WWE headquarters over twenty times with threats to blow up the company’s office and harm staff members. Zavr was upset that WWE released former Women’s Champion Mickie James.

    Zavr was arrested last Friday and arraigned yesterday at state Superior Court in Stamford, CT. Zavr’s next court date will be on May 25th. He was originally held over the weekend in Stamford on a $250,000 bond but released on a $5,000 bond Monday. His lawyer describes him as a “fervent wrestling fan” who did not intend to follow through on his threats. Court records show that New York City police know Zavr as being emotionally disturbed.

    During his arraignment on Monday, the angry WWE fan apologized for the phone calls and called them foolish & childish. Zavr allegedly threatened to blow up WWE’s offices and said he would visit the building with a machete and a machine gun. The phone calls began on April 24th and continued through April 27th. Nineteen calls were made by Zavr on April 24th with a handful of calls made over the next few days. During one call, Zavr threatened to kill an un-named WWE employee and his family. The phone calls were traced back to a cell phone that Zavr had.

    Zavr has been charged with four counts of fourth-degree threatening, one count of second-degree harassment and two counts of second-degree threatening.

    The judge told Zavr on Monday that he could not contact WWE employees, go near it’s offices in Stamford or attend any events. Zavr’s actual response to this in front of the courtroom: “I’m not allowed to go to wrestling shows?”

  • Michael Jordan To Host Future Raw?, Reaction To Henry’s Arrest

    — Examiner.com is reporting that WWE officials have asked basketball great Michael Jordan to host a future episode of Raw. Company sources say Jordan has yet to respond to WWE’s query.

    It’s worth noting that the Jun. 14 edition of Raw will be taking place at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, where the Jordan-owned Charlotte Bobcats play.

    Following a Washington Wizards’ practice session in February 2003, Jordan was interviewed and told that Monday Night Raw would be taking place later that night at his home arena (the MCI Center, now known as the Verizon Center). Jordan responded, “Oh, wrestling’s in town?” One reporter said, “Yeah, Ric Flair just walked by.” Jordan then let out a “Whoooo!” He then noted that he grew up watching Flair. While “His Airness” is regarded as North Carolina’s most famous alum, he acknowledged that day North Carolina is “Flair Country.”

    — As reported earlier, Mark Henry was arrested late one night at a bar in Belfast, Ireland while the Raw crew was stranded during their recent trip overseas. His arrest garnered attention as a local newspaper quoted a fan who claimed that the WWE Superstar threw a beverage at him and his fiancee, and challenged him to a fight. Reaction to Henry’s arrest within the company is said to be minimal as he is considered a mild-mannered individual and it is believed that the fan did something to provoke him. (source: www.pwtorch.com)

  • The Cutting Edge Returning Tonight, New WWE Book Information

    — WWE has announced that Edge will be bringing back his talk show segment on tonight’s episode of Raw, “The Cutting Edge.” His guest will be Randy Orton.

    After Raw acquired “The Rated-R Superstar” in the 2010 WWE Draft, Edge made immediate impact with a Spear to Orton, enabling Batista to become the No. 1 Contender to WWE Champion John Cena.

    — The following synopsis has been released for WWE’s forthcoming book release, Rumble Road: Untold Stories from Outside the Ring: “In this follow-up to Robert Caprio’s collection of road stories Are We There Yet?, WWE superstars and divas dish the dirt on the late night shenanigans that take place behind the scenes, on the road, and in hotels all across the world. If you think all the WWE drama unfolds inside the wrestling ring, then think again. Sometimes the action outside the ring can be just as exciting — and as dangerous — for the wrestlers as they drive, fly and occasionally fight their way from city to city to entertain their millions of fans. In Rumble Road the superstars of the WWE recount their shocking and hilarious road trip misadventures. From classic pranks to the particular habits of the baddest of the bad guys who ever set foot inside the squared circle, these are the untold stories of life on the road — straight from the mouths of those who continue to live it one trip at a time.”

    This title will be released on Tuesday, July 20, 2010.

    — Paul Bearer was backstage visiting friends at a Raw live event held in his hometown of Mobile, Alabama this past weekend. The former WWE manager revealed on his Twitter account that his “Legends” contract with WWE was recently extended.

  • New Feud For The Hart Dynasty, JTG’s Planned Move To Raw

    — Carlito and Primo Colon are expected to be put together as a tag team and feud with The Hart Dynasty over the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship.

    — It was announced during Tuesday’s WWE Supplemental Draft that JTG had been drafted from SmackDown to Raw. However, it was announced minutes later that the move had been rescinded and that JTG would remain on SmackDown. While it has yet to disclosed why JTG didn’t change brands, the move was planned ahead of time as he is advertised for Raw events over the next few weeks.

    — Nickelback will be giving away a pair of tickets to several Monday Night Raw events throughout the months of May and June. You can enter here for a chance to win.

    sources: PWInsider.com, Wrestling Observer Newsletter

  • WWE Couple Weds, Cover Art For Undertaker DVD Set, More

    — The following article was printed in yesterday’s edition of the Sunday Mail, a Scotland based newspaper.

    “SCOTS wrestling star Drew McIntyre has secretly married his former Playboy model girlfriend. WWE Intercontinental champion Drew tied the knot with fellow wrestler Taryn Terrell in Las Vegas. Drew’s parents, from Ayr, got a call 15 minutes before the ceremony. His dad Andy Galloway, 50, said: “It was a shock, but we were really pleased.”

    — On Jun. 8, WWE will release a three-disc DVD set on Undertaker focusing on historical gimmick matches, including casket matches, Hell in a Cell, and inferno matches. You can view the cover art for the DVD here.

    — Yesterday was former WWE Champion Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s birthday as he turned 38 years old.

  • Fatal 4 Way Main Events & News On Several Developmental Stars

    – The main events for WWE’s new Fatal 4 Way pay-per-view will in fact be two Fatal 4 Way championship matches. WWE sent out the following promotional blurb about the event over the weekend, which takes place on June 20th from the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, NY:

    Get ready for WWE’s most unpredictable event as eight WWE Superstars face off in two separate Fatal 4 Way championship matches! Watch Randy Orton, John Cena, Triple H, Rey Mysterio, and all your favorite Superstars in “WWE: Fatal 4 Way” live on Sunday, June 20, 2010 on pay-per-view!

    – Developmental wrestler Brett DiBiase, brother of Ted DiBise, suffered a knee injury at Thursday’s Florida Championship Wrestling tapings during a match with fellow second generation star Joe Hennig. No word yet on the severity of the injury. DiBiase and Hennig are expected to be called up to the main roster soon as part of a new “privileged sons” stable led by Ted DiBiase,  but the formation of that new group might be delayed.

    – Orlando Colon, the cousin of WWE superstars Carlito and Primo, is now wrestling as “Tito Colon” in Florida Championship Wrestling. He had previously been working as “Tito Nieves.” Tito Colon is also close to being called up to the main roster and will likely be paired with Carlito and Primo when he debuts.

    – Developmental referee Aaron “Goose” Mahoney is now on the road with the main roster and has begun working house shows.

  • Jack Swagger Inteview: Being World Champ, His Dream Feud

    WWE World Heavyweight champion Jack Swagger recently spoke to Mike Mooneyham of South Carolina’s Post and Courrier newspaper. Here are some highlights of what Swagger said about:

    Being World Champion: “It’s been unbelievable, it’s such an incredible honor. I don’t think it’s completely sunk in yet. This last month or so has been so surreal. I’ve tried to enjoy it a much as I can.”

    His Current role: “Right now I think what you see is the respect I have for the championship. It’s the top of the game and there’s nothing bigger. I need to carry myself in such a way of a world champion because it is such an honor. Other than that I wouldn’t read too much into the character. I’m just portraying a champion.”

    His Dream Feud: “A dual program with The Undertaker, who I think is the greatest wrestler ever, and Rey Mysterio. It would be Jack Swagger vs. Rey Mysterio vs. The Undertaker for the world heavyweight title. That would be great.”

    Visit PostandCourrier.com to read the full interview.

    Related: Pictures of Jack Swagger’s hot new wife, Catalina White