Speculation about the WWE buying out TNA have been persistently storming the Internet for the past two months. TNA are in trouble financially, big trouble and are desperately in need of help. There's definitely a few benefits for the WWE if they were to purchase the TNA organization.
Reports suggest that Dixie Carter is struggling to pay talent fees, arena fees and with pending lawsuits on the horizon, she'll soon have no option but to sell.
Throughout the whole week, many have questioned the value of TNA to WWE, I'm here today to present a few reasons as to why the acquisition of TNA would be best for business.
1. It would provide More Depth to the Roster:
We all know why the WWE enforced the brand split; to increase ratings for SmackDownLive and due to the plethora of talent they had. The revival of NXT left the WWE with no choice but to split the roster to give wrestlers equal exposure. But the draft was lob-sided, for what RAW lack in main event stars, SmackDown has in abundance.
Despite the inclusion of the Cruiserweight Division on Monday nights, RAW is still a chore to sit through for three hours. RAW needs fresh blood and TNA talent would definitely provide that.
Can you imagine what it would do to the main event scene of RAW and the mid-card of SmackDown if you add guys like; Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Bobby Lashley, Ethan Carter to the roster? Countless new matchups would be made possible.
Regardless of how you feel about TNA's status, the addition of their wrestlers would not only aid WWE in the ring, it would also help resource allocation in relation to media and charity duties. More bodies would mean more widespread media runs equalling to more coverage of the WWE. What's there not to like here?
2. More Video Content for the WWE Network:
We all know that the WWE Network is one of the main revenue streams for the WWE today and that they pride themselves in having unique content to draw in as many subscribers as possible. If the WWE buys TNA, they also buy their history, that would mean their whole video archive would belong to the network.
The WWE Network currently has 1.2 million subscribers according to this year's 2nd quarter reports and Vince is hell-bent on reaching 2 million. There are currently over 6,000 hours of unique content on the WWE Network at the moment, the acquisition of TNA would surely add approximately 2,000 more hours. This would draw in the TNA faithful who don't necessarily want to convert fully to WWE programming.
To increase the exclusivity of the WWE Network the WWE could also create another show/brand similar to NXT solely with just TNA Impact wrestlers. Tapings could be recorded at Full Sail University and aired every Thursday, once again this would draw in die hard TNA fans who want to stay loyal.
3. Less Wrestling Competition:
If this happens, once again Vince would sit alone at the top of the wrestling business. Ever since WWE bought out WCW in 2001, Vince has firmly established himself as an industry titan who will be as ruthless as he needs to be to see off all competition.
The buy-out of TNA would symbolise another reaffirmation of WWE's dominance on the pro wrestling industry. For some fans, this may represent a downward spiral as the WWE would once again monopolise wrestling on TV and when they're the only gig in town it gives fans no choice but to watch them.
It also gives WWE no reason to push the boat or try new things due to pressure from competitors. But Vince doesn't care, he just wants to be number one. "It's never bad to bury your competition," as Vince once famously said.
TNA drew 315,000 viewers for last week's episode of Impacting Wrestling. This may not be a gigantic amount but it is still a sizeable following that would boost Raw and SmackDown's TV ratings, which would inevitably help WWE's negotiation stance with NBC in two years time.
Even though there are several pros in WWE buying out TNA, as with every major business deal it will still draw resentment from many. TNA loyals will resent the fact that WWE owns their beloved product which they will not be able to religiously follow anymore.
The reality is, the WWE can buy TNA and probably will, TNA is reportedly worth only $40 million in assets, easily within the WWE's price range. Regardless of the outcome, it's clear to see that TNA is struggling, it just needs to be put out of its misery sooner rather than later.