Recently we learned that WWE will not be allowing any of its contracted talent to run their own independent channels on platforms such as YouTube or Twitch. Only WWE-owned channels, such as UpUpDownDown, will be allowed to operate. This comes on the heels of another recent discovery; that WWE sees their talent as independent contractors who do not qualify for full-time employment benefits.
I assume that one of the reasons WWE is so invested in monopolizing their talent is money. Don’t want talent wrestling for other promotions and making them money? Ironclad contracts with no-compete clauses. Want to make sure your talent don’t speak ill of the company and discourage investors or shareholders? Heavily monitored social media handles. Interested in keeping all the royalties from a talent’s name and likeness? Close down all third-party channels.
WWE is money-hungry. I understand that. It’s hard to argue against that when they went on with a pay-per-view after a talent had fallen to his death in the ring, making his co-workers wrestle around his blood. However, WWE has also had an obsession with becoming a mainstream product since the 80s. That obsession has only intensified in the last decade or so, with the amount of talent being sent to do radio programs and talk shows.
Platforms like YouTube, Twitch, Patreon, and OnlyFans reach different audiences beyond just that of wrestling fans. Someone who likes Japanese culture and food may watch Asuka’s YouTube channel. People who like video games may enjoy AJ Styles or Randy Orton’s gaming streams. Those interested in cosplay can look at Thea Trinidad’s page for ideas and inspiration. And by reaching those other markets, you can potentially pull them in as new WWE fans. This has shown to be the case with the reality shows Total Divas, Total Bellas, and Miz and Mrs. Some of the fans of those shows ended up tuning into wrestling as well.
Also according to WWE, all of the talent are simply independent contractors. They don’t even provide insurance benefits to them and I doubt that they get any type of compensation for the miles they have to drive and fly between shows. Their jobs don’t function like a regular full-time job would. If you don’t even provide basic benefits packages to the talent, how do you fix your mouth to tell them they can’t have a personal YouTube channel?
To me, it seems that it would behoove WWE to let talent have their own creative outlets. Doing so gives WWE that sweet, sweet mainstream attention they’re so desperate for. How much money do they really lose if someone makes funky looking snacks on camera or posts their makeup routines? It doesn’t make sense and frankly, this monopolization of talent is getting a bit ridiculous.
