WWE and Ten Sports said they have extended their television distribution agreement for five years through 2019 while growing their partnership beyond WWE’s weekly flagship programming to include localized content, more languages and live events.
In addition to continued broadcasts of WWE staples like Raw, SmackDown, NXT and monthly pay-per-view events, beginning Jan. 1, Ten Sports will introduce a new one-hour fully customized version of Raw tailored specifically for the Indian audience and add WWE Main Event to its programming lineup. Ten Sports will also air WWE content in multiple Indian languages for the first time and bring WWE live events back to India in 2015.
“We are very excited to extend our long-standing, successful partnership with WWE for the Indian Subcontinent,” said Ten Sports CEO Rajesh Sethi in a statement. “WWE is the leader in sports entertainment, and its high-quality entertainment is a huge hit among Indian audiences. Being rights holders since 2002, we have seen WWE grow over the years to dominate the sports entertainment space, and with this new deal through 2019, we are confident of taking our partnership to the next level, delivering audiences more breakthrough programming and engagement opportunities in the years to come.”
Ten Sports and WWE first signed a distribution deal in 2005.
“India remains a strategically important market for WWE and we are thrilled to continue our long-term partnership with Ten Sports, the region’s leader in sports programming,” said WWE Executive Vice President, International Gerrit Meier in a statement. “As the value of the WWE brand and our content continues to increase around the world, the scale and scope of this new agreement illustrates our ability to drive a passionate and engaged audience as well as the potential we have for future growth.”
