Tony Khan On Counterprogramming: It Has Never Been A Thing Where It Has Cost Us Anything
Tony Khan discusses counterprogramming.
The topic of counterprogramming has been a huge topic of conversation in the world of wrestling as of late, as WWE has strategically planned events to compete head-to-head with various AEW pay-per-view events throughout the year.
Speaking with Ariel Helwani for a new interview, Khan said that understands the measures despite thinking that is a purposeful move on WWE’s part.
“I do think it is done on purpose and I understand it and it’s part of wrestling. We’ve seen a lot of it but I think other promotions that have been the challenger brand in our lifetime have seen a lot of it. Jim Crockett Promotions, which is the forerunner to WCW, saw a lot of this. Jim Crockett Promotions ended up having to sell the company to Ted Turner who then made a great run. It took a while but really if you look, Ted Turner took over at the start of 1989 and the strongest run came over six years later, almost seven years later it started. It’s interesting because as a challenger wrestling promotion, you’ve got a great opportunity but it’s really hard, it involves tons of investment to build up to be a true strong challenger and that’s why we took the risk with AEW when we did. I do think that we’ve seen that kind of counter programming in those things and I understand. Looking back at wrestling history, I kind of expect that.”
Khan went on to say that the counterprogramming challenges have never hurt AEW.
“I think it’s okay because for us, it’s always worked out when we’re in a great position. It has never been a thing where it’s cost us anything and when you do something like AEW All In Texas where we do the show in the afternoon, it really worked out for us great and it was one of the best days in company history.”
To finish off the topic, Khan noted that he doesn’t take the situation personally.
“It’s very interesting, I think that it’s something that’s a part of the wrestling business and I definitely don’t take it personally. I think it’s no more personal to me than it was to Jim Crockett or maybe less so than it was with Ted Turner but definitely all of us have seen that kind of counter programming and could speak to that. Certainly with AEW, I’m proud that we continue to run strong and be that great challenger brand in pro wrestling.
Elsewhere in the interview, Khan commented on a possible Warner Bros Discovery sale. Fans can check out his full comments by clicking here.
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