The Road to the WWE Network

I feel a renewed sense of vigor when it comes to the wrestling industry this week, but also a new sense of apprehension.  At the center of this contradiction of emotions is the WWE Network.

I signed up for my free trial on day one, and based on the traffic and the issues that I had, I certainly wasn't the only one. I've seen a lot of news reports online regarding the problems that the network had with signups, as well as the issues with on-demand content, and I for one didn't have that many issues. I had to refresh several times during registration, but a little perseverance got me through just fine. I did have issues watching content on the PS3, and if I hadn't had my laptop to fall back on (not literally), I certainly would have been much more frustrated than I was.

After tinkering around with the network for a few days, I do have one glaring concern that has worried me...over-saturation of content. I remember when I was a kid, playing Nintendo games that I rented on the weekends for $2.52 at the local video store, or watching Saturday morning cartoons on the three channels that we had at the time, and I remember being very very content with the entertainment that I had at my disposal. Fast forward to today, with the instant streaming of Hulu and Netflix, the constant gaming content of Gamefly, the massive amount of channels at my fingertips, and I find myself more ADD when it comes to my entertainment. It is harder to keep my attention, and often times I spend my days off trying to decide what game or TV show or movie to watch, and at the end of the day I have wasted it.

My point in relating all of that is, sometimes too many options is a bad thing, and over saturation is a bad thing.  What if, after six months, we all realize that we don't want every wrestling match ever at our fingertips? What if we slowly stop watching Raw because we have gotten burned out? The quickest way to devalue something is to almost give it away. Don't get me wrong, the price point is very desirable. But in a way, I am afraid that Wrestlemania this year will feel more like a ROH iPPV than the big league, high dollar spectacle that it used to...simply because I bought something for $9.99 and basically got Wrestlemania as a free bonus (at least that is how my brain is going to look at it).

I hope that doesn't happen, mind you. I hope that this is a new era for the WWE, and the original content is going to be key here. In a few weeks, once we get a few episodes of the original content under our figurative belts (can I say belt or do I have to say title?) we will have a better grasp of what the network will be like as an actual network instead of an archive. I suppose we will all see.