Black Widow
08-06-2008, 02:49 PM
MCMAHON DOES NOT FOLLOW STORYLINE CREATION, IS NOT ALWAYS TOLD WHAT WILL BE ON WWE TV; LONGTIME INVESTOR SAYS WWE SPENDS MONEY LIKE 'DRUNKEN SAILORS'
WWE held a conference call with investors this morning to discuss their second quarter financial results. Participating in the call were Chief Executive Officer Linda McMahon, Chief Operating Officer Michael Sileck and Chief Financial Officer George Barrios.
Linda read a prepared statement, noting that Wrestlemania, normally a part of the second quarter, fell into the first quarter this year. She also put over the Million Dollar giveaway, and praised their international growth, specifically their new television deal in India. Linda mentioned their targeting of younger fans with the new kid's magazine, and pointed out that all WWE programming was now rated PG. She noted the rise in expenses due to growth, and that they are working to slow down those expenses going forward.
Michael Sileck then read his statement and put over the success of the European and Australian tours. It was noted an increase in PPV buyrates and revenue has made up for the removal of New Year's Revolution from the PPV calendar. In discussing WWE.com traffic, he noted it was down from last year due to the major boost the website got last year from the Vince McMaion limo explosion angle, but that all other Internet indicators were up.
George Barrios reemphasized that WWE is going to be looking to control the expenses that they have been incurring due to their growth. Barrios then reviewed the financial numbers that you can view at the link above. He also reemphasized that Wrestlemania being in the first quarter this year made the PPV numbers look weaker in this quarter in comparison. He noted that year-to-date PPV numbers for 2008 show a 6% increase compared to last year. He put over the 25% growth in home video sales versus last year.
They then held a Q&A session. Here are some highlights:
- When discussing the economic downturn in the U.S. having an impact on WWE revenue, it was noted that they are also starting to see a drop in the U.K. as well.
- Concerning the launch of WWE Fan Nation, they noted the creation was done, in part, to bring back fans that were going to other websites for rumors and news. They also said that they were working to make the videos on WWE.com more important to the storylines and characters.
- Regarding the WWE Film business, they have one theatrical release (12 Rounds) and one straight-to-DVD release (Behind Enemy Lines 3 with FOX) in post-production.
- They talked about being careful not to "burn out" their International strongholds by only visiting certain cities a certain number of times a year. Linda stressed that their European tours are always "very calculated" in terms of areas and building sizes, allowing them to always be a success.
- They sort of steered clear of explaining where cost cuts would be made to reduce expenses going forward, only to say that they were looking for more than a "one quarter fix".
- The JAKKS-Pacific lawsuit is starting to "speed up" as discovery continues and they have a court date scheduled for 2010.
- One person asked if there would be more emphasis on the undercard matches on PPV events, rather than just pushing the top matches with storylines. The person also asked if Freddie Prinze Jr. being added to the creative team was going to make a change in whether more matches would have storyline background. Linda avoided it, noting she isn't the "creative expert", but they like the direction they are going in.
- The same person continued to ask about the lack of storylines and emphasis put on ECW and the tag division, and Linda McMahon point blank said "I do not follow storyline creation, in fact it is not always told to me". Linda said she likes that "surprise" element, and pretty much brushed off the creative questions by once again saying she likes "the direction we're going in".
- The last caller (and I don't think it was a coincidence he was last) was a long-time investor who took them to task as being "disingenuous" in their explanation of the $100 million expense WWE is incurring to expand their production facility. The caller noted that WWE's sole explanation for the expense was that it was for "raw materials and maintenance" and said the "long suffering" stockholders deserved more of an explanation, saying that the company has been spending money "like drunken sailors". Sileck responded by stating that they hadn't upgraded the production facility in 20 years, and that they had done a "damn good" job of bringing in revenue and that the expense was justified with the upgrade to HD and expansion of their television and video product. That ended the Q&A session of the call.
PWInsider.com
WWE held a conference call with investors this morning to discuss their second quarter financial results. Participating in the call were Chief Executive Officer Linda McMahon, Chief Operating Officer Michael Sileck and Chief Financial Officer George Barrios.
Linda read a prepared statement, noting that Wrestlemania, normally a part of the second quarter, fell into the first quarter this year. She also put over the Million Dollar giveaway, and praised their international growth, specifically their new television deal in India. Linda mentioned their targeting of younger fans with the new kid's magazine, and pointed out that all WWE programming was now rated PG. She noted the rise in expenses due to growth, and that they are working to slow down those expenses going forward.
Michael Sileck then read his statement and put over the success of the European and Australian tours. It was noted an increase in PPV buyrates and revenue has made up for the removal of New Year's Revolution from the PPV calendar. In discussing WWE.com traffic, he noted it was down from last year due to the major boost the website got last year from the Vince McMaion limo explosion angle, but that all other Internet indicators were up.
George Barrios reemphasized that WWE is going to be looking to control the expenses that they have been incurring due to their growth. Barrios then reviewed the financial numbers that you can view at the link above. He also reemphasized that Wrestlemania being in the first quarter this year made the PPV numbers look weaker in this quarter in comparison. He noted that year-to-date PPV numbers for 2008 show a 6% increase compared to last year. He put over the 25% growth in home video sales versus last year.
They then held a Q&A session. Here are some highlights:
- When discussing the economic downturn in the U.S. having an impact on WWE revenue, it was noted that they are also starting to see a drop in the U.K. as well.
- Concerning the launch of WWE Fan Nation, they noted the creation was done, in part, to bring back fans that were going to other websites for rumors and news. They also said that they were working to make the videos on WWE.com more important to the storylines and characters.
- Regarding the WWE Film business, they have one theatrical release (12 Rounds) and one straight-to-DVD release (Behind Enemy Lines 3 with FOX) in post-production.
- They talked about being careful not to "burn out" their International strongholds by only visiting certain cities a certain number of times a year. Linda stressed that their European tours are always "very calculated" in terms of areas and building sizes, allowing them to always be a success.
- They sort of steered clear of explaining where cost cuts would be made to reduce expenses going forward, only to say that they were looking for more than a "one quarter fix".
- The JAKKS-Pacific lawsuit is starting to "speed up" as discovery continues and they have a court date scheduled for 2010.
- One person asked if there would be more emphasis on the undercard matches on PPV events, rather than just pushing the top matches with storylines. The person also asked if Freddie Prinze Jr. being added to the creative team was going to make a change in whether more matches would have storyline background. Linda avoided it, noting she isn't the "creative expert", but they like the direction they are going in.
- The same person continued to ask about the lack of storylines and emphasis put on ECW and the tag division, and Linda McMahon point blank said "I do not follow storyline creation, in fact it is not always told to me". Linda said she likes that "surprise" element, and pretty much brushed off the creative questions by once again saying she likes "the direction we're going in".
- The last caller (and I don't think it was a coincidence he was last) was a long-time investor who took them to task as being "disingenuous" in their explanation of the $100 million expense WWE is incurring to expand their production facility. The caller noted that WWE's sole explanation for the expense was that it was for "raw materials and maintenance" and said the "long suffering" stockholders deserved more of an explanation, saying that the company has been spending money "like drunken sailors". Sileck responded by stating that they hadn't upgraded the production facility in 20 years, and that they had done a "damn good" job of bringing in revenue and that the expense was justified with the upgrade to HD and expansion of their television and video product. That ended the Q&A session of the call.
PWInsider.com