WWE RAW Viewers in the 3 Hour Era (July 23 2012 to Dec 2 2013) Analysis

Raw Data (some pun intended) was pulled from TV By the Numbers and Wrestling Observer

Notes on Special RAW Shows during these 72 weeks

• July 23 2012 was also the RAW 1,000 Special which was heavily hyped (6 million viewers)
• August 6 2012 was Shawn Michaels Appreciation Night (4.36 million viewers)
• Dec 17 2012 was 2012 Slammy Awards (4.23 million viewers)
• Dec 24 2012 was aired on Christmas Eve (RAW Christmas Special) (3.14 million viewers)
• Dec 31 2012 was aired on New Years Eve (Champions Choice) (3.55 million viewers)
• January 14 2013 was 20th Anniversary Special (4.55 million viewers)
• January 28 2013 was 2013 Raw Roulette (5.02 million viewers)
• March 4 2013 was WWE Old School (5.01 million viewers)

Most Common Viewership Patterns:

It's evenly split between the first hour being the weakest (34 weeks) and the final hour being the weakest (34 weeks).  It's exceptionally rare to have the middle hour have the lowest viewership (only happened in 2013 during 5/6, 6/17, 9/30 and 10/7 shows).

Quarterly Averages

All 3-hour RAWs since 7/23/12 Included:

(Also, you can compare the numbers when you take out some of the unusual episode (1,000 episode, Xmas Eve, NYE, 20th Anniversary, Old School.)

Two observations about the 4th Quarter (September to December):

• It's not uncommon to see such a weak fourth quarter - more than half a million viewers typically return after the start of the year during the key Royal Rumble to Wrestlemania season.
• It's very rare that the final hour has most viewers in the fourth quarter- out of 23 weeks, only once (10/7/13) was the final hour had the most viewers. It's much more common that the final hour has the highest viewership in the 2nd and 3rd quarters (almost 30% of the shows).

The "post-PPV bump"

In general, Viewership goes up 3% to 4% the day after a PPV as loyal fans and the loyal non-purchasers (an ever increasing number it seems) tune in to find out what happened at last night's event.  If you exclude many of the unusual PPVs listed above, my estimate is about +170,000 viewers tune in. The biggest overall improvement comes in the 1st hour (+219,000 viewers; +5.5%) as compared to the 2nd hour (+160,000 viewers; +3.8%) or 3rd hour (+130,000 viewers; +3.2%).

The size of the bump is also tied to the importance of the PPV - for instance, the RAW episode following an A-level PPV (Royal Rumble, Summer Slam or especially Wrestlemania) is almost +400,000 people versus another normal Q1/Q2/Q3 episode.  However, the RAW episode following a B-level PPV is substantially weaker (about +100,000 for the first hour but no substantial gain for second or third hours).

The last 34 weeks have not reflected a great trend for WWE - particularly with their RAW and Smackdown Contract Negotiations looming as a major milestone in 2014.  However, what is the most important question is whether or not we'll see viewership return to robust Q1 levels, or whether the fatigue of 180+ minutes of weekly Raw is just too much for television for anyone beyond the hardcores.

Some more stats for those that care:

Really seems clear that viewers have finally been trained to tune in early (8 pm) to catch the post-PPV action.

Chris Harrington (@mookieghana) is working on his first book, Wrestlenomics—a collection of pro-wrestling analytics and statistics. He can be reached at chris.harrington@gmail.com and regularly updates his wrestling statistics website indeedwrestling.com and his blog indeedwrestling.blogspot.com

WWE 2000-2013 stats

After a quick review of the post-WCW, post-ECW era for WWF/WWE most matches...
source data: TheHistoryofWWE.com
Analysis: Chris Harrington (indeedwrestling@gmail.com)

DATA


More than 1,000 matches

Kane: 1581 matches (14 years)

John Cena: 1488 matches (12 years)

Randy Orton: 1466 matches (13 years)

The Big Show: 1397 matches (13 years)

Edge: 1249 matches (12 years)

Chris Jericho: 1238 matches (12 years)

Matt Hardy: 1227 matches (11 years)

Christian: 1191 matches (11 years)

Triple H: 1064 matches (11 years)

Rey Mysterio Jr: 1037 matches (11 years)

More than 800 matches

CM Punk: 996 matches (8 years)

Shelton Benjamin: 940 matches (9 years)

John Morrison: 927 matches (8 years)

The Miz: 915 matches (9 years)

Chavo Guerrero Jr: 885 matches (11 years)

William Regal: 879 matches (12 years)

Mark Henry: 872 matches (12 years)

Batista: 872 matches (9 years)

Chris Benoit: 867 matches (7 years)

Jeff Hardy: 860 matches (8 years)

Kofi Kingston: 842 matches (7 years)

Kurt Angle: 815 matches (7 years)

The Undertaker: 815 matches (11 years)

Cody Rhodes: 803 matches (7 years)

More than 500 matches

Bradshaw: 796 matches (8 years)

Dolph Ziggler: 780 matches (8 years)

Val Venis: 762 matches (9 years)

Hurricane Helms: 691 matches (9 years)

Rob Van Dam: 687 matches (7 years)

Booker T: 683 matches (8 years)

Sho Funaki: 669 matches (10 years)

D-Von Dudley: 666 matches (5 years)

Bubba Ray Dudley: 665 matches (5 years)

Carlito: 663 matches (7 years)

Jack Swagger: 657 matches (6 years)

Albert: 651 matches (7 years)

Ron Killings: 638 matches (8 years)

Santino Marella: 629 matches (7 years)

Charlie Haas: 625 matches (9 years)

Test: 621 matches (7 years)

Bob Holly: 609 matches (9 years)

Sheamus: 607 matches (5 years)

MVP: 584 matches (5 years)

Eddie Guerrero: 581 matches (6 years)

Victoria: 558 matches (7 years)

Tommy Dreamer: 557 matches (7 years)

Beth Phoenix: 545 matches (6 years)

Tajiri: 544 matches (5 years)

Scotty 2 Hotty: 532 matches (8 years)

Zack Ryder: 531 matches (7 years)

Fit Finlay: 520 matches (5 years)

Lance Cade: 517 matches (6 years)

Brian Kendrick: 516 matches (6 years)

Jamie Noble: 516 matches (7 years)

Chris Masters: 516 matches (7 years)

More than 300 matches

Shawn Michaels: 494 matches (8 years)

Ted Dibiase Jr: 492 matches (5 years)

Chuck Palumbo: 485 matches (6 years)

The Great Khali: 481 matches (8 years)

Daniel Bryan: 480 matches (4 years)

Paul London: 475 matches (6 years)

Primo Colon: 465 matches (6 years)

Spike Dudley: 461 matches (5 years)

Mickie James: 459 matches (5 years)

Alberto Del Rio: 453 matches (4 years)

Trish Stratus: 451 matches (7 years)

Steven Richards: 451 matches (9 years)

Tyson Kidd: 434 matches (4 years)

Rikishi: 433 matches (5 years)

Drew McIntyre: 430 matches (6 years)

Nunzio: 426 matches (6 years)

Billy Gunn: 421 matches (5 years)

Kelly Kelly: 411 matches (7 years)

Crash Holly: 408 matches (4 years)

Natalya Neidhart: 403 matches (6 years)

Gene Snitsky: 403 matches (5 years)

Rob Conway: 402 matches (5 years)

Vladimir Kozlov: 394 matches (6 years)

Evan Bourne: 393 matches (5 years)

JTG: 390 matches (7 years)

Rhyno: 383 matches (4 years)

Ric Flair: 382 matches (7 years)

Umaga: 382 matches (5 years)

Molly Holly: 382 matches (6 years)

Melina: 369 matches (7 years)

Wade Barrett: 364 matches (4 years)

Goldust: 364 matches (6 years)

Jimmy Yang: 361 matches (8 years)

Layla: 357 matches (7 years)

Billy Kidman: 355 matches (5 years)

Michelle McCool: 351 matches (6 years)

Trevor Murdoch: 351 matches (4 years)

Rene Dupree: 342 matches (4 years)

Sylvian Grenier: 339 matches (5 years)

Alicia Fox: 330 matches (5 years)

Lance Storm: 329 matches (4 years)

Torrie Wilson: 326 matches (7 years)

Lita: 320 matches (6 years)

Eve: 318 matches (4 years)

Ron Simmons: 317 matches (5 years)

Viscera: 305 matches (5 years)

Nick Dinsmore: 304 matches (5 years)

David Hart Smith: 302 matches (6 years)

Orlando Jordan: 300 matches (4 years)

More than 75 matches

Super Crazy: 295 matches (4 years)

Maven: 292 matches (4 years)

Maryse: 288 matches (4 years)

Ken Kennedy: 288 matches (4 years)

Heath Slater: 286 matches (4 years)

The Rock: 277 matches (3 years)

Perry Saturn: 276 matches (3 years)

X-Pac: 274 matches (3 years)

Rosey: 272 matches (3 years)

Justin Gabriel: 271 matches (4 years)

Ezekiel Jackson: 269 matches (5 years)

Brock Lesnar: 268 matches (4 years)

Mark Jindrak: 267 matches (3 years)

Shad Gaspard: 266 matches (5 years)

Bobby Lashley: 265 matches (3 years)

Shannon Moore: 263 matches (7 years)

Rico: 261 matches (4 years)

Doug Basham: 261 matches (4 years)

Brie Bella: 261 matches (6 years)

Danny Basham: 259 matches (4 years)

Gail Kim: 253 matches (5 years)

D-Lo Brown: 253 matches (4 years)

Kenny Dykstra: 243 matches (4 years)

Raven: 241 matches (3 years)

Mike Knox: 237 matches (4 years)

Jey Uso: 234 matches (4 years)

Alex Riley: 230 matches (4 years)

Jimmy Uso: 229 matches (4 years)

Curt Hawkins: 224 matches (5 years)

Jillian Hall: 223 matches (5 years)

Curtis Axel: 222 matches (4 years)

Yoshi Tatsu: 221 matches (4 years)

Charles Wright: 218 matches (3 years)

Joey Mercury: 216 matches (4 years)

Damien Sandow: 215 matches (4 years)

rumble: 214 matches (8 years)

David Otunga: 214 matches (3 years)

Luke Gallows: 213 matches (4 years)

Nikki Bella: 206 matches (6 years)

Tyson Tomko: 203 matches (4 years)

Brian Christopher: 200 matches (2 years)

Steve Blackman: 196 matches (2 years)

Ivory: 195 matches (4 years)

Steve Austin: 194 matches (3 years)

Paul Birchill: 194 matches (5 years)

John Heidenreich: 194 matches (3 years)

Brodus Clay: 191 matches (3 years)

Al Snow: 190 matches (4 years)

Justin Credible: 188 matches (3 years)

Bull Buchanon: 184 matches (2 years)

Kevin Thorn: 183 matches (3 years)

Darren Young: 182 matches (4 years)

Maria: 181 matches (4 years)

Jinder Mahal: 180 matches (3 years)

Dawn Marie: 179 matches (4 years)

Jackie: 177 matches (4 years)

Johnny Stamboli: 172 matches (2 years)

Tazz: 170 matches (3 years)

Simon Dean: 169 matches (4 years)

Robbie McAllister: 169 matches (3 years)

Dean Malenko: 169 matches (2 years)

Ryback: 167 matches (3 years)

the Big Bossman: 165 matches (3 years)

Jazz: 165 matches (4 years)

Rory McAllister: 161 matches (3 years)

Candice Michelle: 159 matches (4 years)

Matt Striker: 158 matches (4 years)

Titus O'Neil: 158 matches (3 years)

Jim Duggan: 156 matches (3 years)

Sin Cara: 155 matches (3 years)

Bill DeMott: 151 matches (3 years)

Tyler Reks: 148 matches (4 years)

Antonio Cesaro: 146 matches (2 years)

Luther Reigns: 143 matches (3 years)

Essa Rios: 139 matches (2 years)

Ray Gordy: 138 matches (4 years)

Fandango: 138 matches (4 years)

Rodney Mack: 136 matches (2 years)

unknown: 134 matches (6 years)

Elijah Burke: 134 matches (2 years)

Road Dogg: 133 matches (1 years)

Sean O'Haire: 132 matches (2 years)

Johnny Jeter: 131 matches (2 years)

Epico: 128 matches (3 years)

Nidia: 127 matches (2 years)

Taka Michinoku: 127 matches (2 years)

Kaitlyn: 126 matches (3 years)

AJ: 126 matches (3 years)

Deuce: 126 matches (2 years)

Chaz Warrington: 125 matches (1 years)

Tamina: 120 matches (4 years)

Trent Barreta: 114 matches (3 years)

Mike Mondo: 114 matches (1 years)

Scott Steiner: 114 matches (1 years)

Chris Kanyon: 113 matches (2 years)

Domino: 111 matches (2 years)

Mason Ryan: 110 matches (3 years)

Sabu: 106 matches (2 years)

Shawn Stasiak: 103 matches (2 years)

Dean Ambrose: 99 matches (2 years)

Percy Watson: 98 matches (3 years)

Muhammad Hassan: 95 matches (2 years)

Vito: 94 matches (2 years)

Rosa Mendes: 92 matches (3 years)

the Sandman: 88 matches (2 years)

Psychosis: 88 matches (2 years)

Stacy Keibler: 87 matches (3 years)

Seth Rollins: 87 matches (2 years)

Kenzo Suzuki: 87 matches (2 years)

Jerry Lawler: 87 matches (3 years)

Joey Abs: 86 matches (1 years)

Road Warrior Animal: 84 matches (2 years)

Balls Mahoney: 84 matches (2 years)

Hunico: 83 matches (2 years)

Kid Kash: 82 matches (2 years)

Katie Lea Burchill: 81 matches (2 years)

Daivari: 80 matches (3 years)

Hornswoggle: 80 matches (3 years)

the Ultimo Dragon: 79 matches (2 years)

Shane McMahon: 79 matches (4 years)

Tatanka: 78 matches (1 years)

Gangrel: 77 matches (1 years)

A FEW COMMENTS

It's easy to forget about Kane.  The only people who've wrestled more than a decade consistently (with more than ten matches in WWE each year) from 2000 onward are Glen Jacobs, John Cena, Randy Orton, Paul "Big Show" Wight, Chris Jericho, Edge, William Regal and Mark Henry. 2010 marked a lot of endpoints: Undertaker and Triple H's last major runs were in 2010.  Matt Hardy left in 2010.  In 2011, Edge retired, John Morrison left for Hollywood, Chavo Guerrero Jr finally departed and Michelle McCool headed for off for a life as Mrs. Undertaker.  Throughout all of this, Kane continued.

Kane had major tag-teams with his "brother" the Undertaker (especially 2000/2001), with the Big Show (2005, 2006 and again in 2011), Hell No (starring Daniel Bryan and their awkward hugs) 2012-2013 and RVD (2003).  His number one opponent from 2000-2013 was actually Rey Mysterio Jr with more than 75 matches against one another - especially in the 2008-2009 period.  He also had major feuds against MVP (2006-2007), Edge (2005) and Triple H (2000-2001).  Still, overwhelming, the person that Kane worked with the most in the ring (either as a partner or an opponent) was the Undertaker (170+ matches) followed by Big Show (136+ matches) and Rey Mysterio Jr and Chris Jericho (both with 93+ matches).

THE ENDS OF THE SPECTRUM

High Winning Percentage

• John Cena: 1123-251-54 and 1 other match = 82% win
• the Undertaker: 642-115-40 = 85% win
• Shawn Michaels: 378-95-21 = 80% win
• Bobby Lashley: 226-33-6 = 87% win
• Ryback: 126-33-5 = 79% win
• Sin Cara: 120-31-4 = 79% win
• Bill Goldberg: 43-4-6 = 91% win
• Christy Hemme: 42-8-2 = 84% win

Lowest Winning Percentage

• Shannon Moore: 57-205-1 = 22% win
• Heath Slater: 39-204-1 = 16% win
• Mike Knox: 51-185-1 = 22% win
• Jillian Hall: 46-163-1 = 22% win
• Dawn Marie: 31-145-2 and 1 other match = 18% win
• Stacy Keibler: 19-66-2 = 22% win
• Rosa Mendes: 10-73-0 = 12% win
• Katie Lea Burchill: 18-63-0 = 22% win
• Gangrel: 18-58-1 = 24% win
• Dave Taylor: 13-57-1 = 19% win
• Eric Escobar: 11-58-0 = 16% win
• Antonio: 9-59-0 = 13% win
• Romeo: 9-53-0 = 15% win
• James Curtis: 7-47-1 = 13% win
• Headbanger Thrasher: 11-41-1 = 21% win
• Sakoda: 11-41-0 = 21% win

Right in the Middle

• Randy Orton: 679-657-50 and 1 other match = 51% win
• Hurricane Helms: 343-340-8 = 50% win
• Booker T: 336-325-22 = 51% win
• D-Von Dudley: 332-320-14 = 51% win
• Bubba Ray Dudley: 323-329-13 = 50% win
• Bob Holly: 299-299-11 = 50% win
• Tajiri: 273-265-6 = 51% win
• Billy Kidman: 179-172-4 = 51% win
• X-Pac: 133-128-13 = 51% win
• Brian Christopher: 96-99-5 = 49% win
• Joey Mercury: 95-92-1 = 51% win
• Tazz: 84-81-5 = 51% win
• Ray Gordy: 68-69-1 = 50% win
• Rodney Mack: 67-68-1 = 50% win
• Sabu: 53-51-2 = 51% win
• Dean Ambrose: 48-48-3 = 50% win
• Christopher Nowinski: 31-32-1 = 49% win
• Big E Langston: 30-31-1 = 49% win

EDIT: Was missing August-Dec 2010 in the original post.  Updated the match count on 12/5.

Cena vs Orton: WWE PPV History

With their upcoming PPV match in mind, I was curious how many times they've wrestled on PPV (17 times, by my count). For a feud that feels so old, it's interesting to see they haven't technically faced each other in a PPV match since Feb 2011.

Backlash 07 - Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena - April 29, 2007 (14,500; more than 13,000 paid; sell out): WWE World Champion John Cena defeated Randy Orton, Shawn Michaels, and Edge in a No DQ, No Count-Out match at 19:22
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMINmajCxJA

Vengeance "Night of Champions" - Houston, TX - Toyota Center - June 24, 2007 (15,000; sell out): WWE World Champion John Cena defeated Booker T (w/ Sharmell), Mick Foley, Randy Orton, and Bobby Lashley at 10:09
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oy00qVuFUIc‎

Summer Slam 07 - East Rutherford, NJ - Continental Airlines Arena - August 26, 2007 (17,441; sell out): WWE World Champion John Cena pinned Randy Orton with the FU at 21:20
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cxm3uCg_YZw


Unforgiven 07 (Raw) - Memphis, TN - Fed Ex Forum - September 16, 2007: Randy Orton defeated WWE World Champion John Cena via disqualification at 7:21 when Cena refused to adhere to referee Mike Chioda's orders to stop assaulting Orton in the corner
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDjQwkO-cyg

No Way Out 08 - Las Vegas, NV - Thomas & Mack Center - February 17, 2008 (matinee) (13,500; announced at 15,120; sell out): John Cena defeated WWE World Champion Randy Orton via disqualification at 15:49 when Orton slapped the referee seemingly for no reason
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHWc3kT5250

WrestleMania 24 - Orlando, FL - Citrus Bowl - March 30, 2008 (announced at 74,635; 63,100 paid; 11,500 freebies): WWE World Champion Randy Orton defeated Triple H and John Cena in a No DQ, No Count-Out match at 14:10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMONPpvXTBo

Backlash 08 - Baltimore, MD - 1st Mariner Arena - April 27, 2008 (9,000; sell out): Triple H defeated WWE World Champion Randy Orton, John Cena, and John Bradshaw Layfield in a No DQ, No Count-Out elimination match to win the title at 28:12
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFAkS8Y8KFY

Night of Champions 09 - Philadelphia, PA - Wachovia Center - July 26, 2009 (14,003; announced at 17,774; sell out): WWE World Champion Randy Orton defeated John Cena and Triple H in a No DQ match at 22:22
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx7A6aVeYf4

Summer Slam 09 - Los Angeles, CA - Staples Center - August 23, 2009 (matinee) (14,116; announced at 17,129; sell out): WWE World Champion Randy Orton pinned John Cena with the RKO at 20:45
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FihXFDEE66Q

Breaking Point - Montreal, Quebec - Bell Centre - September 13, 2009: John Cena defeated WWE World Champion Randy Orton to win the title in an I Quit match at 19:47
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbjZAe_Donk

Hell in a Cell - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center - October 4, 2009 (12,356; announced at 16,186; sell out): Randy Orton pinned WWE World Champion John Cena to win the title in a Hell in a Cell match at 21:24
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2EigU_ElQc‎

Bragging Rights 09 - Pittsburgh, PA - Mellon Arena - October 25, 2009 (13,562; 11,000 paid; sell out): John Cena defeated WWE World Champion Randy Orton in a 60-minute No DQ Ironman match to win the title
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCjmQBpP_aYp

Elimination Chamber - St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center - February 21, 2010 (17,628; 14,000 paid; sell out): John Cena defeated Randy Orton, WWE World Champion Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Ted Dibiase Jr., and Triple H in an Elimination Chamber match at 30:23 to win the title
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1WwphntHe4‎

Fatal 4 Way - Long Island, NY - Nassau Coliseum - June 20, 2010: Sheamus defeated WWE World Champion John Cena, Edge, and Randy Orton to win the title at 17:25
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtRA2yTpfqA‎

Elimination Chamber 2011 - Oakland, CA - Oracle Arena - February 20, 2011 (11,500): John Cena defeated CM Punk, John Morrison, Sheamus, R-Truth, and Randy Orton in an Elimination Chamber at 33:12
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tw5GK0JbUZQ

LUCHA STATS, Plug for my Book and WWE Whirlwind

WRESTLING RESULTS

I've been on a Lucha kick lately updating AAA and CMLL statistics derived from the Luchablog Results Index.

CMLL 1999-2013 stats including: Most Matches, Win/Loss records, Average place on Card & Main Events stats, Tag Team Records and Feud counts.

AAA 1999-2013 stats including: Most Matches,  Win/Loss records, Average place on Card & Main Event Stats

Gimmick & Name changes in Lucha can make my brain hurt. Big thanks to @luchablog for providing some guides to prevent me from going completely insane.

Other federations I've recently done statistics for in the past five weeks:

New Japan Pro Wrestling 1999-2013

All Japan Pro Wrestling 2000-2013

NOAH Pro Wrestling 2000-2013

Dragon's Gate 2004-2013 

FMW - Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling 1989-2002; 2002-2013 (other related groups)

Other results compiled previously: 

JCP/WCW 1983-2001 

ECW 1992-2001 

WWF/WWE 1970-2012

TNA 2002-2012  

Smokey Mountain Wrestling 1991-1995 

RING OF HONOR 2002 - 2012 

WORLD CLASS WRESTLING 1982-1990 

FLORIDA CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING 1970-1987 

AWA WRESTLING 1960-1989

** CHEAP PLUG ALERT **

If this sort of thing interests you, please consider supporting my wrestling book (Wrestlenomics).  It's two volumes - one will be results (similar to what you see above, but broken into greater depth by year) and one will be analytics (similar to what you see on this blog, but with umlauts.)  The book is not out yet, but you can pre-order the book in PDF or physical form.  Send an email to chris.harrington@gmail.com with the word "Wrestlenomics" in the subject line.  Pricing is $12 for PDF and $25 for BOOK (please add $2 for international shipping).  When you pre-order, I'll send you copies of all of the preview chapters (several hundred pages of content) for you to devour while I continue to plow through this project.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: "WWE WHIRLWIND"

Also, I wrote a piece about the WWE Financials and WWE Network for this week's Figure Four Weekly Newsletter; if you're a subscriber, you should check it out.

If you're not a subscriber (and why aren't you?! The Wrestling Observer is AWESOME.), you can piece together most of what I wrote by combing these three pieces from this blog:

• WWE Network to feature Wrestlemania?  (11/21/13)
• Can the WWE Network succeed? (11/1/13)
• WWE Rolling 12 Month Revenue Trends (10/31/13)

WWE Network to feature Wrestlemania?

In the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer (11/25/2013), Dave Meltzer details one scenario for the WWE Network Launch would include a "free" Wrestlemania as an initial enticement in order to swell WWE Network subscriber ranks immediately.

It's a bold strategy which puts a lot their entire pot of Domestic PPV revenue into play while offering a very hefty incentive to potential subscribers to sign up for their premium Channel. This of course is predicated on the notion that there will be full provider coverage (i.e. you'll be able to order this channel from your Cable and Satellite provider) which remains a significant hurdle.

First, let's look at the number of monthly subscribers that WWE would need in order to gross the same amount of Revenue as they currently do on domestic PPVs (originally I composed this part as part of a discussion over at the ProWrestlingOnly message board)

For a few years, WWE would break out their PPV revenue into both Domestic & International amounts: (see page 30 )
WWE PPV 

2006: $74.1 (domestic) + $19.5M (int'l) = 21% int'l
2007: $76.6 (domestic) + $17.7M (int'l) = 19% int'l
2008: $73.6 (domestic) + $17.8M (int'l) = 19% int'l
2009: $65.0 (domestic) + $15.0M (int'l) = 19% int'l
2010: $58.5 (domestic) + $11.7M (int'l) = 17% int'l
2011: $65.8 (domestic) + $12.5M (int'l) = 16% int'l
I couldn't find a 2012 number quickly; let's assume it's around the 16.3%. 

2012 estimated: $70.0M (domestic) + $13.6M (int'l)
I'll take the last four quarters as a proxy for 2013...
2013 estimated: $66.8M (domestic) +$13.0M (int'l) 

So, all together, I think we'll be looking at about $65M to $70M in Domestic PPV income that would potentially be "in danger" with a WWE Network launch that includes Wrestlemania. 

 Can we translate that into subscribers?

Full year revenue per buy in 2012 was $20.60 (up from $19.94 in 2011). (source: 2012 10-K)
The Q3 2013 10-Q statement has revenue per buy at $19.35. Let's split the difference and assume $20. 

So, from a revenue standpoint.... 

$70M in 12 months = 12 months x $5.83M/month = 292k domestic monthly buyers x $20/buy x 12 months $65M in 12 months = 12 months x $5.42M/month = 270k domestic monthly buyers x $20/buy x 12 months (This is a number which smooths out the peaks for Wrestlemania/Rumble/SummerSlam with the B-shows.) 

WWE revenue depends on two numbers: their split with provider and the Network Price.

  So, to keep revenue flat for WWE (without covering new costs)- they'd be looking at somewhere in the neighborhood of 800,000 (low-end) to 1.5 million (middle) monthly subscribers depending on the Network Price Point and the provider split.

Keep in mind that the big dogs, like HBO, barely break $7/subscriber.  I cannot fathom them being able to even get 50% split with providers for their brand new channel.

Assuming full coverage (big IF), I think they can definitely hit a million subscribers for Wrestlemania provided they do a media blitz. If they are launching with WM, I don't see any reason they would not launch at $15/month. If anything, they can come down off that to $10 if they REALLY have to following the PPV. In fact, I'd almost prefer they launched at $15 for  Y1 and for Y2 they did something goofy like dropped to $10 but returned Wrestlemania to PPV-only.  This does NOT take into account the cost of starting up the network (which is a $30M to $50M bogey), but at least shows how's it's possible for them to keep a flat domestic PPV revenue.

It's been an eventful week for WWE Network rumors. On Tuesday, WWE announced the appointment of Matthew Singerman as Executive Vice President of Programming reporting directly to Vince McMahon. His responsibilities would include "strategic development of content, including original, unscripted and scripted shows, scheduling of all programming and operations across all distribution platforms, including a potential WWE Network."  Also, this week Cable providers began contacting WWE Classics of Demand subscribers with a message that the service was being discontinued in early 2014; this is presumed to be part of the prelude to the WWE Network launch.  Let the rumors fly!

A Cornucopia of RAW Statistics (2011-2013)

Analysis by Chris Harrington (chris.harrington@gmail.com) for indeedwrestling.com

Last night's RAW main event of Wyatts & Shield vs Rhodes Brothers/Usos/Punk&Bryan was notable for its length (over 24 minutes).  In the pantheon of the last 150 RAWs, it one of the longest televised matches in awhile:

RAW Matches lasting over 18.5 minutes (2011-2013)

7/22/2013 Daniel Bryan won a gauntlet match at 32:18

• Bryan defeated Jack Swagger (w/ Zeb Colter & Antonio Cesaro) via submission with the Yes Lock at 2:57
• Bryan pinned Cesaro (w/ Colter & Swagger) with an inside cradle at 23:25 as Cesaro attempted a European uppercut
• Bryan defeated Ryback via disqualification at 9:13 when Ryback put Bryan through a table

10/3/2011 John Cena, CM Punk, Mason Ryan, Sheamus, WWE Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne defeated WWE World Champion Alberto Del Rio, Christian, Jack Swagger, WWE IC Champion Cody Rhodes, WWE US Champion Dolph Ziggler (w/ Vickie Guerrero), & David Otunga at 26:53

2/25/2013 John Cena pinned CM Punk with the FU at 26:33

11/18/2013 Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Goldust & The Usos (Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso) defeated The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins) & The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Erick Rowan & Luke Harper) at 24:05

5/13/2013 John Cena & Team Hell No (Kane & Daniel Bryan) defeated The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns) in an Elimination match at 23:18

5/20/2013 WWE US Champion Dean Ambrose, WWE Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns defeated Kofi Kingston, Daniel Bryan & Kane at 22:55

9/23/2013 Daniel Bryan, Rob Van Dam, Jimmy & Jey Uso, Dolph Ziggler, Darren Young & Titus O'Neil, Justin Gabriel, & Zack Ryder defeated WWE US Champion Dean Ambrose, WWE Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns in an elimination match at 23:11

6/20/2011 WWE World Champion John Cena, World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton, & Alex Riley defeated R-Truth, Christian, & Mike Mizanin in an elimination match at 21:56

7/15/2013 Rob Van Dam pinned Chris Jericho with the Five Star Frog Splash at 21:36 

1/3/2011 Randy Orton defeated Sheamus and Wade Barrett in a steel cage match at 18:45

9/5/2011 John Cena, John Morrison, Sheamus, & Alex Riley defeated Wade Barrett, Christian, Jack Swagger, & WWE US Champion Dolph Ziggler in an impromptu elimination match at around the 19-minute mark

10/14/2013 Cody Rhodes & Goldust defeated The Shield (Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins) (c) (w/ Dean Ambrose) in a No Disqualification match to win the WWE Tag Team Championship at 19:20

11/4/2013 World Heavyweight Champion John Cena, WWE Tag Team Champions Cody Rhodes & Goldust defeated Damien Sandow, Jack Swagger & Antonio Cesaro (w/ Zeb Colter) at 19:11 when Goldust pinned Cesaro with the Final Cut

1/7/2013 WWE World Champion CM Punk (w/ Paul Heyman) defeated Ryback in a TLC match at 18:52

  

5/27/2013 The Shield (Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins) (c) defeated Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan & Kane) to retain the WWE Tag Team Championship at 18:35 

Interestingly, 2012 RAW is conspicuously absent from this list. The longest match that year was...

10/22/12: WWE World Champion CM Punk (w/ Paul Heyman) pinned World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus in a non-title lumberjack match at 18:13

Daniel Bryan working a trio of matches on a single RAW was not the only example of being asked to pull triple duty:

April 11, 2011: R-Truth

Gauntlet Match: R-Truth pinned Dolph Ziggler (w/ Vickie Guerrero) with the What's Up at 3:56

Gauntlet Match: R-Truth pinned John Morrison with the What's Up after avoiding Starship Pain at 4:50

Gauntlet Match: R-Truth fought John Cena to a double disqualification at 5:34 when WWE World Champion Mike Mizanin and Alex Riley attacked both men

Additionally, others have worked two matches on a single RAW which totaled more than 18 minutes:

July 3, 2013: Daniel Bryan (32:15) 

Daniel Bryan defeated Ryback by DQ (15:00)

The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins) defeated Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan & Kane) & Randy Orton (17:15)

July 25, 2011: Rey Mysterio Jr (26:20)

WWE World Championship Tournament Finals: Rey Mysterio Jr. pinned Mike Mizanin at 13:18 with the 619 and splash off the top

John Cena pinned WWE World Champion Rey Mysterio Jr. to win the title at 12:52 with the FU as Mysterio attempted the 619

September 10, 2011: Randy Orton & CM Punk (23:43)

Randy Orton defeated WWE World Champion CM Punk via disqualification in a non-title match at 13:43

Randy Orton & Jerry Lawler defeated WWE World Champion CM Punk & Dolph Ziggler (w/ Vickie Guerrero) in an impromptu match at around the 10-minute mark 

August 13, 2012: CM Punk & The Big Show (19:27)

WWE World Champion CM Punk defeated the Big Show via disqualifcation in a non-title match at 6:01

 WWE World Champion CM Punk & John Cena defeated Daniel Bryan & the Big Show at 13:26 

June 4, 2012: John Cena (18:10)

John Cena pinned Tensai (w/ Sakamoto) in an impromptu bout with the FU at 9:05

John Cena pinned Michael Cole in a No DQ match at 9:05 with the FU

2 HOUR RAW vs 3 HOUR RAW
Since the beginning of 2011, there has been 78 2-hour RAWs and 73 3-hour RAWs.

SINGLES MATCHES: 305 on 2-hour RAW (5:12 average) vs. 414 on 3-hour RAW (6:25 average)
TAG MATCHES: 113 on 2-hour RAW (6:23 average) vs. 142 on 3-hour RAW (7:10 average)
HANDICAP MATCHES: 11 on 2-hour RAW (6:16 average) vs. 18 on 3-hour RAW (6:25 average)
BATTLE ROYALS: 9 on 2-hour RAW (7:23 average) vs. 4 on 3-hour RAW (6:11 average)

# OF MATCHES: 5.62 average on 2-hour RAW (5:38 average) vs. 7.92 average on 3-hour RAW (6:36 average) -- Overall, # of matches has increased about 18% and total minutes of wrestling time has expanded from 31:20 (2-hour RAW) to 52:17 (3-hour RAW). (This does not include matches that went immdiately to a "no contest" nor contest segments such as arm wrestling, divas musical chairs, verbal debates or tug-o-war contests.)

Number of people participating in the wrestling matches per show: 15.14 average on 2-hour RAW (2.69 people per match) versus 21.59 average on 3-hour RAW (2.73 people per match).  Essentially, they've increased the exposure of people through putting more matches on the show rather than just more people in the matches.

People with at least ten singles matches in both 2-hour and 3-hour RAW eras:
MORE TIME: Alberto Del Rio: (+1:13), Dolph Ziggler: (+2:46), Randy Orton: (+2:27), CM Punk: (+1:38), Sheamus: (+5:07), Daniel Bryan: (+3:47), John Cena: (+5:28), the Big Show: (+1:52), Kane: (+1:11)

LESS TIME: The Miz: (-1:38), R-Truth: (-2:28), Zack Ryder: (-1:05)

People with at least ten tag matches in both 2-hour and 3-hour RAW eras:

MORE TIME: Daniel Bryan: (+1:35), Kofi Kingston: (+1:44), Brie Bella: (+1:20), Nikki Bella: (+1:39), Natalya Neidhart: (+1:01)

LESS TIME: Cody Rhodes: (-1:14), Sheamus: (-1:17), Jack Swagger: (-2:53), Santino Marella: (-1:25)

It's less likely that there was a conscious decision that correlated between giving specific people more or less time based on whether it was a two or three hour RAW as much as the changes are probably reflective of the changes in programs (heel/face alignment, which title belts are involved, place on the card) for these people.

(Excludes rumbles, does not attribute exact times of elimination for elimination matches)

Annual Leaders
2011
CM Punk (34 RAW matches with 10:24 average)
Christian (13 RAW matches with 10:06 average)
Rey Mysterio Jr (19 RAW matches with 10:05 average)
The Miz (38 RAW matches with 9:59 average)
John Cena (37 RAW matches with 9:52 average)
Cody Rhodes (13 RAW matches with 9:43 average)
Alex Riley (15 RAW matches with 9:07 average)
Randy Orton (24 RAW matches with 9:03 average)
Alberto Del Rio (35 RAW matches with 8:28 average)
R-Truth (27 RAW matches with 8:27 average)
John Morrison (26 RAW matches with 7:30 average)
Dolph Ziggler (37 RAW matches with 7:23 average)
Wade Barrett (13 RAW matches with 7:22 average)
Sheamus (26 RAW matches with 7:15 average)
Kofi Kingston (28 RAW matches with 7:07 average)

2012
Chris Jericho (15 RAW matches with 10:59 average)
CM Punk (37 RAW matches with 10:56 average)
John Cena (30 RAW matches with 10:31 average)
Sheamus (37 RAW matches with 9:10 average)
Rey Mysterio Jr (15 RAW matches with 9:06 average)
Daniel Bryan (40 RAW matches with 8:47 average)
Dolph Ziggler (46 RAW matches with 8:37 average)
Randy Orton (21 RAW matches with 8:31 average)
Kane (28 RAW matches with 8:08 average)
Damien Sandow (18 RAW matches with 7:47 average)
Sin Cara (19 RAW matches with 7:41 average)
Alberto Del Rio (30 RAW matches with 7:41 average)
Darren Young (15 RAW matches with 7:15 average)
Wade Barrett (14 RAW matches with 7:09 average)
Kofi Kingston (36 RAW matches with 7:01 average)

2013
Goldust (7 RAW matches with 16:07 average)
Roman Reigns (25 RAW matches with 13:19 average)
John Cena (17 RAW matches with 12:55 average)
Seth Rollins (26 RAW matches with 12:25 average)
CM Punk (19 RAW matches with 11:44 average)
Daniel Bryan (40 RAW matches with 11:38 average)
Chris Jericho (15 RAW matches with 11:18 average)
Dean Ambrose (28 RAW matches with 11:15 average)
Randy Orton (39 RAW matches with 10:11 average)
Dolph Ziggler (32 RAW matches with 9:52 average)
Rob Van Dam (10 RAW matches with 9:14 average)
Luke Harper (5 RAW matches with 9:12 average)
Kane (24 RAW matches with 8:54 average)
Jimmy Uso (17 RAW matches with 8:45 average)
Jey Uso (17 RAW matches with 8:45 average)
Sheamus (20 RAW matches with 7:45 average)
Alberto Del Rio (34 RAW matches with 7:34 average)
Cody Rhodes (33 RAW matches with 7:29 average)
Christian (9 RAW matches with 7:25 average)
Antonio Cesaro (33 RAW matches with 7:12 average)

Curtis Axel (19 RAW matches with 7:06 average)

Sources
Analysis by Chris Harrington (chris.harrington@gmail.com)
Data from http://prowrestling.wikia.com/wiki/WWE_Monday_Night_RAW and TheHistoryofWWE.com
Last updated: November 19, 2013

Annual WWF Attendance 1994-2012

I've seen some confusion on this - sometimes people are mixed up about fiscal year &calendar year. Sometimes we're looking at the house shows (i.e. non-PPV and non-TV taping) numbers and sometimes we're looking at just north american numbers, and sometimes people are looking at the total attendance numbers and later there is even breakouts where they try to leave things like ECW only events out of the mix.

Here are the numbers that WWE has reported in their SEC filings:

ATTENDANCE CHART




DATA



Fiscal Years

F1995: starts May 1, 1994 to April 30, 1995: 1,163,259 attendance in 347 shows = 3,352 (A)
F1996: starts May 1, 1995 to April 30, 1996: 931,954 attendance in 247 shows = 3,773 (A)
F1997: starts May 1, 1996 to April 30, 1997: 1,060,740 attendance in 199 shows = 5,330 (A)
F1998: starts May 1, 1997 to April 30, 1998: 1,576,112 attendance in 218 shows = 7,230 (A)
F1999: starts May 1, 1998 to April 30, 1999: 2,273,701 attendance in 199 shows = 11,426 (A)
F2000: starts May 1, 1999 to April 30, 2000: 2,485,100 attendance in 206 shows = 12,064 (B)
F2001: starts May 1, 2000 to April 30, 2001: 2,449,800 attendance in 212 shows = 11,556 (B)
F2002: starts May 1, 2001 to April 30, 2002: 2,032,754 attendance in 237 shows = 8,577 (B)
F2003: starts May 1, 2002 to April 30, 2003: 1,815,100 attendance in 327 shows = 5,551 (C)
F2004: starts May 1, 2003 to April 30, 2004: 1,647,990 attendance in 329 shows = 5,009 (C) = 1,351,350 NA attendance in 297 NA shows = 4,550 avg NA attendance; 296,640 int'l attendance in 32 int'l shows = 9,270 avg int'l attendance
F2005: starts May 1, 2004 to April 30, 2005: 1,617,430 attendance in 325 shows = 4,977 (D) = 1,173,000 NA attendance in 276 NA shows = 4,250 avg NA attendance; 444,430 int'l attendance in 49 int'l shows = 9,070 avg int'l attendance
F2006: starts May 1, 2005 to April 30, 2006: 1,713,840 attendance in 300 shows = 5,713 (D) = 1,237,520 NA attendance in 248 NA shows = 4,990 avg NA attendance; 476,320 int'l attendance in 52 int'l shows = 9,160 avg int'l attendance

Transition Year

T2006: starts May 1, 2006 to Dec 31, 2006: 1,312,180 attendance in 246 shows = 5,334 (D) = 1,030,320 NA attendance in 212 NA shows = 4,860 avg NA attendance; 281,860 int'l attendance in 34 int'l shows = 8,290 avg int'l attendance
(This period also includes the 27 ECW touring events that were held separately before they pulled the plug on that touring project.)

Calendar Year

C2007: starts Jan 1, 2007 to Dec 31, 2007: 2,115,300 attendance in 308 shows = 6,868 (E) = 1,537,800 NA attendance in 233 NA shows = 6,600 avg NA attendance; 577,500 int'l attendance in 75 int'l shows = 7,700 avg int'l attendance
C2008: starts Jan 1, 2008 to Dec 31, 2008: 2,203,300 attendance in 319 shows = 6,907 (E) = 1,548,800 NA attendance in 242 NA shows = 6,400 avg NA attendance; 654,500 int'l attendance in 77 int'l shows = 8,500 avg int'l attendance
C2009: starts Jan 1, 2009 to Dec 31, 2009: 2,383,800 attendance in 342 shows = 6,970 (F) = 1,742,000 NA attendance in 268 NA shows = 6,500 avg NA attendance; 629,000 int'l attendance in 74 int'l shows = 8,500 avg int'l attendance
C2010: starts Jan 1, 2010 to Dec 31, 2010: 2,155,700 attendance in 327 shows = 6,592 (F) = 1,593,900 NA attendance in 253 NA shows = 6,300 avg NA attendance; 577,200 int'l attendance in 74 int'l shows = 7,800 avg int'l attendance
C2011: starts Jan 1, 2011 to Dec 31, 2011: 1,976,500 attendance in 321 shows = 6,157 (G) = 1,446,000 NA attendance in 241 NA shows = 6,000 avg NA attendance; 536,000 int'l attendance in 80 int'l shows = 6,700 avg int'l attendance
C2012: starts Jan 1, 2012 to Dec 31, 2012: 1,854,100 attendance in 314 shows = 5,905 (G) = 1,463,200 NA attendance in 248 NA shows = 5,900 avg NA attendance; 396,000 int'l attendance in 66 int'l shows = 6,000 avg int'l attendance

sources

A WWF PROSPECTUS published 10/19/1999
B WWE Annual Report (10-K) for fiscal year ending April 30, 2003
C WWE Annual Report (10-K) for fiscal year ending April 30, 2004
D WWE "Annual" Report (10-K) for transition year May 1 2006 to Dec 31 2006
E WWE Annual Report (10-K) for calendar year ending 2009
F WWE Annual Report (10-K) for calendar year ending 2010
G WWE Annual Report (10-K) for calendar year ending 2012

Also, check out WWF & WCW House Show Attendance 1991-2001

RAW ratings and viewership - last 52 weeks

Date	Show	8:00 to  8:59 pm	9:00 to  9:59 pm	10:00 to  overrun	8 PM rating (est.)	9 PM rating (est.)	10 PM rating (est.)	total rating	avg viewers (in M)
11/11/13	RAW	3,867,000	3,834,000	3,603,000	2.80	2.77	2.60	2.73	3.77M
11/04/13	RAW	4,069,000	3,951,000	3,643,000	2.87	2.79	2.57	2.75	3.88M
10/28/13	RAW	4,315,000	4,185,000	3,965,000	3.09	3.00	2.84	2.98	4.15M
10/21/13	RAW	3,914,000	3,802,000	3,759,000	2.77	2.69	2.66	2.71	3.82M
10/14/13	RAW	4,114,000	4,146,000	3,716,000	2.96	2.99	2.68	2.88	3.99M
10/07/13	RAW	3,694,000	3,685,000	3,739,000	2.63	2.63	2.67	2.65	3.71M
09/30/13	RAW	3,605,000	3,530,000	3,616,000	2.69	2.64	2.70	2.68	3.58M
09/23/13	RAW	3,603,000	3,795,000	3,820,000	2.70	2.85	2.87	2.81	3.74M
09/16/13	RAW	3,865,000	4,162,000	4,012,000	2.85	3.07	2.96	2.96	4.01M
09/09/13	RAW	3,800,000	3,900,000	3,950,000	2.85	2.92	2.96	2.91	3.88M
09/02/13	RAW	3,690,000	4,146,000	3,974,000	2.66	2.99	2.87	2.85	3.94M
08/26/13	RAW	4,129,000	4,291,000	4,151,000	3.02	3.14	3.04	3.07	4.19M
08/19/13	RAW	4,076,000	4,485,000	4,333,000	3.07	3.37	3.26	3.24	4.30M
08/12/13	RAW	3,743,000	4,273,000	4,317,000	2.67	3.05	3.08	2.95	4.13M
08/05/13	RAW	3,973,000	4,381,000	4,182,000	2.81	3.10	2.96	2.96	4.18M
07/29/13	RAW	3,660,000	3,900,000	3,750,000	2.77	2.95	2.84	2.86	3.77M
07/22/13	RAW	3,922,000	4,162,000	3,933,000	2.89	3.06	2.90	2.95	4.00M
07/15/13	RAW	3,926,000	4,108,000	4,268,000	2.91	3.04	3.16	3.05	4.11M
07/08/13	RAW	3,790,000	4,308,000	4,403,000	2.80	3.18	3.25	3.09	4.18M
07/01/13	RAW	3,720,000	4,135,000	4,012,000	2.71	3.01	2.92	2.89	3.96M
06/24/13	RAW	3,743,000	4,287,000	3,910,000	2.71	3.11	2.83	2.89	3.98M
06/17/13	RAW	4,154,000	4,027,000	4,263,000	3.05	2.95	3.13	3.05	4.15M
06/10/13	RAW	3,893,000	4,085,000	3,992,000	2.97	3.12	3.05	3.05	3.99M
06/03/13	RAW	3,620,000	3,620,000	3,800,000	2.60	2.60	2.73	2.65	3.68M
05/27/13	RAW	3,993,000	3,950,000	3,891,000	2.83	2.80	2.76	2.80	3.94M
05/20/13	RAW	4,080,000	4,300,000	4,310,000	2.86	3.01	3.02	2.97	4.23M
05/13/13	RAW	3,790,000	4,100,000	4,250,000	2.71	2.93	3.04	2.91	4.06M
05/06/13	RAW	3,970,000	3,870,000	3,910,000	2.92	2.85	2.88	2.89	3.92M
04/29/13	RAW	4,287,000	4,311,000	4,257,000	3.06	3.08	3.04	3.06	4.28M
04/22/13	RAW	4,190,000	4,650,000	4,360,000	2.98	3.30	3.10	3.13	4.40M
04/15/13	RAW	4,185,000	4,236,000	4,026,000	3.10	3.14	2.98	3.07	4.14M
04/08/13	RAW	4,490,000	4,780,000	4,560,000	3.34	3.55	3.39	3.43	4.61M
04/01/13	RAW	4,030,000	4,480,000	4,400,000	2.89	3.22	3.16	3.10	4.31M
03/25/13	RAW	4,580,000	4,690,000	4,580,000	3.18	3.26	3.18	3.21	4.61M
03/18/13	RAW	4,252,000	4,415,000	4,114,000	3.08	3.19	2.98	3.08	4.25M
03/11/13	RAW	4,980,000	4,890,000	4,570,000	3.47	3.40	3.18	3.34	4.79M
03/04/13	RAW	4,968,000	5,239,000	4,847,000	3.49	3.68	3.40	3.52	5.01M
02/25/13	RAW	4,860,000	4,700,000	4,560,000	3.54	3.43	3.32	3.43	4.70M
02/18/13	RAW	4,818,000	4,674,000	4,493,000	3.39	3.28	3.16	3.28	4.66M
02/11/13	RAW	4,350,000	4,250,000	4,180,000	3.22	3.15	3.09	3.15	4.25M
02/04/13	RAW	4,863,000	4,857,000	4,711,000	3.58	3.58	3.47	3.54	4.80M
01/28/13	RAW	4,860,000	5,270,000	4,930,000	3.56	3.86	3.61	3.67	5.01M
01/21/13	RAW	4,370,000	4,419,000	4,162,000	3.06	3.09	2.91	3.03	4.32M
01/14/13	RAW	4,500,000	4,680,000	4,470,000	3.16	3.28	3.14	3.19	4.54M
01/07/13	RAW	4,290,000	4,320,000	4,650,000	3.04	3.06	3.29	3.15	4.44M
12/31/12	RAW	3,397,000	3,644,000	3,614,000	2.22	2.38	2.36	2.32	3.55M
12/24/12	RAW	2,940,000	3,271,000	3,219,000	2.09	2.32	2.28	2.24	3.15M
12/17/12	RAW	4,290,000	4,410,000	3,990,000	2.91	2.99	2.71	2.87	4.22M
12/10/12	RAW	3,743,000	3,876,000	3,672,000	2.65	2.75	2.60	2.67	3.76M
12/03/12	RAW	3,580,000	3,370,000	3,360,000	2.66	2.50	2.49	2.55	3.43M
11/26/12	RAW	4,147,000	4,126,000	3,488,000	2.89	2.88	2.43	2.73	3.91M
11/19/12	RAW	3,873,000	3,923,000	3,710,000	2.76	2.79	2.64	2.73	3.83M
11/12/12	RAW	4,150,000	4,390,000	4,030,000	2.84	3.00	2.76	2.87	4.19M

Harrington's Audio Extravaganza (3 shows - over five hours)

It's been an audacious week for wrestling audio from me, the maven of moderately interesting wrestling statistics Mr. Mookieghana (Chris Harrington).

I was on three very different podcasts recently and I really appreciate all the hosts reaching out and inviting me on so I could blither and blather.  Thanks!

  

• 11/9/2013 Good Will Wrestling – WWE TV Network Roundtable

2 hours: Will (Goodhelmet) is joined by Chris Harrington (indeedwrestling.com), David Bixenspan (bleacherreport.com), Keith Harris (cagesideseats.com) and his buddy (and wise historian) Kris Zellner to discuss the upcoming WWE Network. The panel looks back on WWE’s history of television deals, the obstacles and advantages a new network would create, and we come up with some possible programming ideas. An insightful and fun two hours!!!!

DIRECT LINK TO MP3: https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/119350334/download?client_id=0f8fdbbaa21a9bd18210986a7dc2d72c

• 11/12/2013 Slam Zone Wrestling - WWE TV Rights & Network Analysis

40 minutes: This week, we take a break from the usual RAW Recap show to provide you with an exclusive interview with business guy, Chris Harrington! He joined the show this week to discuss the following topics:

-WWE's TV rights fees DOUBLING and how it is going to change the business.

-The state of Monday Night RAW as a weekly 3 hour television program

-Topic of the week: The WWE Network - Will it succeed? Will it fail? Is it worth it?

Listen as special guest Chris Harrington provides you with information you won't get anywhere else, he'll crunch the numbers and analyze the data to almost answer the question once and for all - will the WWE Network fail?

DIRECT LINK TO MP3: http://recordings.talkshoe.com/TC-128263/TS-802986.mp3

• 11/15/2013 Voices of Wrestling - WON HOF with first time voters

2.5 hours: We (@voiceswrestling) are back with a monster podcast talking all things Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame with wrestling statistician Chris “@mookieghana” Harrington, Joe Lanza (@joemlanza) and Rich Kraetsch (@richkraetsch). Joe and Chris were both first-time voters so they discuss how they received votes (black magic!), their voting process (casting of bones) and, of course, who they voted for and why (substantial bribes). We also discuss the biggest snubs of the year and preview next year’s class.

DIRECT LINK TO MP3: http://traffic.libsyn.com/voicesofwrestling/61-HOFMookie.mp3

I had a lot of fun going on each show and each of the hosts and other panelists had really insightful thoughts. I highly encourage everyone to check out these fine podcasts and support their endeavors. You'll hear some of the same talking points from me on each show and I probably use the same lame jokes and hedging techniques. 

All the best.  @mookieghana / chris.harrington@gmail.com