Word broke on Friday that WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon issued an edict this past week to make it clear that WWE stars can no longer “engage with outside third parties.” The belief is that this goes for platforms like Cameo and Twitch.
Pwinsider.com reports there are a lot of people worried about the vague wording of the letter and what exactly is allowed and won’t be allowed. There are some wrestlers who have already reacted negatively to the request because there is a feeling that it was an order to shut down their personal streaming channels. There’s no confirmation that this is actually the case.
Wrestlers told the media outlet that they have been using these platforms as a way to make additional revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic to make up for lost revenue that they usually get from live events and merchandise royalties. Bonuses have also been cut.
AJ Styles regularly streams his own content, but some of the wrestlers who aren’t on the same level as Styles have used third party platforms to build their own brands and make extra money.
There are grumblings among wrestlers about how they feel WWE is hurting their ability to make money outside of the company. In fact, some wrestlers have pushed back on this because they feel like they’re losing the freedom to promote themselves. Thus, it makes some wrestlers consider working somewhere else where they would be allowed more freedom.
There has been some talk over the last 24 hours who are thinking about pushing back against the latest edict from WWE officials.