Smackdown Moving To FX Network?

News

It looks as though FX might be available for WWE Smackdown should MyNetwork TV go out of business. There might be a slight complication as FX is part of the Fox family, which is a rival of NBC Universal and WWE has an exclusive deal on cable with their USA Network. However, they did make exceptions for ECW on SyFy (also an NBC Universal-owned network) and Superstars on WGN as they are lower-rated stations. The FX President, John Landgraf, spoke with Broadcasting Cable about how the network is looking for a major sports franchise to boost their ratings. He noted that FX can remain in fifth place on cable with their current output but to take things to a higher level they would need some sports. “It’s going to be virtually impossible for FX to ever challenge TNT, TBS or USA without sports… No channel is getting anywhere near 1 million adults 18-49, 21 hours a week, 365 days a year, without sports, It’s not going to happen,” said Landgraf. He noted how much NASCAR helped the channel grow, but that they were losing money on rights fees so they dropped it.

Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 13th July 2009 (subscribe here)