Smackdown Leaving MyNetworkTV

[WWE Manster03]

News comes through today that sometime later this year, possibly Sept or Oct, that Smackdown will be leaving MyNetworkTv for SyFy. Staying on Friday, but moving. Is anyone else excited about this? I hate MyNetwork and I think that when they make this move their ratings will increase, because more people get Syfy, or at least know what channel it is, then MyNetwork.
Lets discuss.

 

[whatalife1683]

I read about this today. It is also in the Los Angeles Times about the move. I am happy about i moving. During this time until October, Smackdown usually gets pushed back to a different time due to local baseball. I know this is a problem for most in the United States. I think they should move back to Thursdays though. I hardly watch Smackdown because it is on a Friday. When it was on Thursday, I hardly missed an episode of Smackdown. However, I think the move is good for the show. Like I have stated baseball takes over this time of the year for local channels.

 

[Hawkeye]

Idk smackdown being on MyNetwork allowed fans without cable tv to watch wrestling.If it wasn't for smackdown being on network tv,I don't think I would be a fan because for a long time I didn't have cable.They should move back to CW.It's not fox affiliated so they don't show baseball

 

[Nate DaMac]

Makes no fuck to me for real. I have cable and the lame ass Royals have a tv deal with FoxSports so I never have to miss it anyway. I guess it'd be a double edged sword for them. Losing the viewers without cable could hurt, but moving to cable gives em a better timeslot I suppose. But I do think they need to move to Thursdays.

 

[axl626]

It makes no sense to me. Won't WWE lose money in the long run if the ratings drop, which they will. I agree with Rodricks, they should move to CW or at least try to. I never got why ECW/NXT was/is on Syfy but I could take it as those were the C shows but the B show should at least be on a network that makes some sense.

 

[RockFan89]

The WWE is making a mistake here. They need to have at least one show for non-cable viewers. One demographic they are going to loose in is with Hispanics. I don't have any stats to back this up, but I'm pretty sure many Hispanic fans don't have cable. Besides, I never got why SyFy was the network chosen to broadcast WWE shows. Is it because they offer the most money? I don't know, but I think the WWE will regret this decision.

 

[Kenny Powers]

There are more people that have SyFy then MyNetwork TV. No matter what cable or satellite provider I have had in the past, I still couldn't get MyNetwork TV. The only real reason to have that channel is Smackdown. Now that it doesn't have Smackdown anymore, there is no reason for it to exist. At least the WB was more prominent. Syfy is a good move since they already broadcast NXT and receive more viewers. I'm just excited that I will finally be able to watch the show again since I haven't been able to watch it in years.

 

[WWE Manster03]

They I think are going for the audience that Raw gets. Even NXT gets a 1.0+ on SyFy, and I know a TON of people that have to watch Smackdown on Youtube because they don't get mynetork tv. and around here at least, the Cleveland Indians/Mahoning Valley Scrappers get all the local tv time during the summer. This will I think be a very smart move for them in the long run.

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

This could be good for me, if they change timeslots too. I never get to watch Smackdown because I work every Friday night and Smackdown is over by the time I get home. I really hope this happens because I have a feeling Orton is moving to Smackdown and I don't want to miss that.

 

[DaBadGuy]

I really don't like this move to much, Although Smackdown has been good and ratings have been low because their on MyTV moving to SyFy really isn't going to improve them to much. I mean ECW was on it and NXT is on it currently and the the ratings aren't to good. I understand the move because their were alot of citys that didn't have MyTV and they want them to see it but theirs alot of people he don't have SyFy so their losing viewers as well. Thats was what made Smackdown successful to me, even though their not on a big station like USA,TNT, or TBS mainly alot of people who like wrestling but don't have those channels can watch Smackdown on regualr TV because it's on UPN, CW, or MyTV same could be said for people with cable.. Now people without cable can't watch it and their losing good viewers IMO.

 

[Deviancy]

The WWE has one distinct advantage over TNA, they have one program that's available to those who don't have basic cable.

They take that out of the picture, they are looking at a ratings dive when it comes to SD. They'll lose a pretty big chunk of their SoCal audience, and that's where a lot of the Mysterio viewers are, and they are why the show gets a big bump. Keep in mind, there are small cities in SoCal that have the population of a few of the states that don't have mynetwork combined.

But the WWE isn't thinking of their ratings, they're thinking about how much SyFy offered them over MyNetwork.

Big shock.. putting profit over the fans.

That's sooooo f'in rare..

But if it means they'll lose the PG nonsense and add in more grit, and get those diva's showing more flesh like they used to, I'll tune in.

If not.. I'll stick with just reading the results on this page and watching the highlights on youtube.

 

[AllanC]

all im going to say is thank god....im tired of MyNetwork blacking out half way in and then mixing in half the main event half way in, then blacking out again and finally comes back on with five minutes left....i know it doesnt happen for everyone...but it sucks when it happens here....and plus...can anyone say a RATINGS CHANGE??

 

[Dagger Dias]

My initial reaction when I saw that article was "Oh no.... PLEASE let it be a network that's not too tough to find...." and luckily we get SyFy here at my campus. I was worried that it could end up on that channel Superstars is on, or one that's even tougher to find. I like Smackdown better than Raw and would have been rather upset if I wouldn't be able to watch it here at the apartment anymore.

That aside, I think the ratings might go up a bit with a move to SyFy because more people are fimilar with SyFy than MyNetworkTV and that will be a good thing for Smackdown. Its ratings will still be nowhere near Raw's due to the weekly spoilers, but I bet we will see a small increase following the network change as more people will get the chance to watch it then those who currently do. Plus, more people are familiar with SyFy than with MyNetworkTV. I honestly had no idea what MyNetworkTV was until after Smackdown moved there and I recall being upset that I thought I wouldn't get to watch it anymore the last time it moved.

 

[Mr. Dejan]

Living In Australia this doesn't really effect me but WWE programing is only available on Cable here. This Makes it quite hard for some people to watch the shows weekly. Meaning less people get the chance to follow the story lines which in the long run means less viewers.

I truly believe that if WWE were to move all their programing to Free to air TV more people would start to pick up Wrestling.

 

[Davi323]

I am thrilled at this news. MyNetworkTV is only a subchannel to a local network affiliate, and is not offered in HD in my area. SyFy is.

 

[Trill Co$by]

Like it matters.

A lot of people don't even watch Smackdown because they go and read the spoilers. So what does it matter? And for those who don't I'm sure there's always DVR, or even the old fashion way of plugging your VCR into the tv and recording it.

Sure people with Basic Cable won't get to watch, but I'm sure WWE has this thought through. Surely WWE can add a weekend program like they used to have. You know, something like Jakked or Metal.

I, for one, am not bothered by this as I have DVR anyways.

 

[pun2003hh]

Hey look, I always like the idea of at least one wrestling show on network tv (I miss the old Saturday morning Superstars show on Fox) but the fact of the matter is MyNetwork is a failing network. With no original programming besides SmackDown, the network is doomed for failure at some point. At least Sci-Fi is a stronger brand.

Also don't forget that at the peak of WWE's popularity and ratings (we'll say around 97-98) there wasn't a single WWE program found on broadcast television. Now that I think about it, WCW was at the height of their popularity as well and again, not a single program on free tv.

The other thing is nowadays WWE is a ppv business. Everything they do is geared toward ppv buys. In that mentality, those who are without cable and have no access to ppvs are not a profitable market for the WWE. Yes, it sucks for the little guy, but it is good business. And at the end of the day, you have to remember that this entire industry is a BUSINESS.

 

[WWE Manster03]

another thing to consider that I forgot. I don't know about everywhere else in the country, but here Mynetwork isn't available on basic cable. You have to get the digital box and it is on channel like 310 or something like that. So in reality, the poster that said more homes get SyFy then MyNetwork hit the nail on the head. Unless you have Digital cable/Satellite/or a digital converter box you weren't getting Smacdown at all. And now there is a TON of people that only have basic cable that can catch their program. Like I've said I love this move..
Davi323- That is how it is here, so I'm happy as a clam.

 

[Amarillo del Bosque Verde]

This actually makes more sense. Alot of people don't get My Network TV for one thing. Another thing is that if it's on a cable channel it might get replayed on universal HD like Raw and NXT.

 

[Depakote]

Thank god for this move! I havent been able to watch Smackdown on Fridays ever since they moved to this lame network because my provider doesnt carry bad tv stations. Thank God for Hulu or I wouldnt be able to watch Smackdown at all. I couldnt be happier about this change.

 

[DirtyJosé]

I am torn on this issue:

On one hand, I love this. I love SmackDown being on a network that can better advertise it. I love that SyFy is recognizing that WWE is a draw; that kind of partnership is priceless. I love that I will no longer have SmackDown preempted by a shitty Dodgers vs Angels game (seriously, screw them both).

On the other hand, the poorer guys that I work with that I know can only watch SmackDown because they don't have internet and don't have basic cable will be sad without their own wrestling fix. I can't speak for what this switch might do for ratings, plus or minus, but I know there will be a lot of fans saddened by the news.

 

[Hurt2k1]

This now has both of WWE major shows on NBC Universal cable networks which will be soon taken over by Comcast which will be soon to be the major cable provider in the US so this is great business move by the WWE and will reach out to more of the general public. Now the next question is what will happen to NXT since SyFy is moving its Friday night shows to Tuesday night.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I'm happy about this personally because it means that I can actually watch the damn thing instead of having to wait for the local ABC affiliate in Lexington, WTVQ, to air the show at 11:35 pm on Saturday nights. A big problem with that is that the show is often pre-empted during football season when the channel shows college football games. Sometimes the games ran long or went into overtime or whatever and it didn't do any good to set the DVR because the tv listings still had Smackdown on from 11:35 to 1:35. Even if you tried to DVR the thing, you'd most likely wind up missing half the show.

So, from a personal standpoint, I'm happy about Smackdown moving to Syfy. I'm just hoping that the WWE can find some way to save NXT.

 

[whatalife1683]

I read they are looking for a new place for NXT. It is not being cancelled, but will be moving somewhere else. I guess it can go on WGN too. For the poster talking about losing so many people in So Cali, you are very off on that topic. Yes, they may lose viewers from the area; however, Smackdown is pre-empted so much during baseball season. I know this for a fact because I live in So Cali. Hell, a few weeks ago it was pre-empted for the pre-season game between the Dodgers and Angels. At least, I can DVR Smackdown when it moves. When it is pre-empted, it usually starts later than the time it says. I do not know what the ratings will be, but they could stay the same. I know people will argue not everyone has cable. Most people have cable now, and the people who do not have cable are actually very low. There are many cable shows who beat regular free tv programs. People thought MNF moving to cable was bad, and it has worked out great and has establish excellent ratings. Cable is more affordable for basic packages, and families who are poor usually have basic cable. I think some posters in here need to remember it is 2010 not the 90s.

 

[Takerfan93]

I doubt they will get higher ratings because it is still on a Friday night, they NEEEED to move it to Thursdays again. And it is cable, which obviously not everyone gets.

I am glad Smackdown is moving to a cable channel nonetheless because it helps to establish it as a bigger show. And while I would have preffered the cable channel not to be SyFy, it is a good first step.