WWE has now been part of the Netflix ecosystem for nearly two years, and according to one of the streamer’s top executives, the partnership rarely involves pushback over content standards like blood or language.
Gabe Spitzer, Netflix’s Vice President of Global Live Sports and Entertainment, discussed the relationship on Richard Deitsch’s Sports Media podcast.
When asked specifically whether Netflix has conversations with WWE about excessive blood or cursing, Spitzer said those discussions don’t happen often, acknowledging that standard ratings guidelines still apply but noting Netflix tries to allow more leeway than traditional broadcast.
Not often. Obviously, there are ratings standards that anyone has to adhere to. We’re Netflix so we try to be a little looser on that.
He said the more common conversations with WWE actually revolve around scheduling and promotion. For example, getting advance notice on major matchups or events so Netflix can build marketing campaigns weeks ahead of time rather than only around premium live events.
The place where we’ve had conversations with them around locations has also helped us…there have been examples where, with the Raw coming up in a couple of weeks, it’s leading to a big Roman Reigns championship match after this tournament they’ve done, the ability for us to promote three to four weeks out for a big Raw, starting off the year with Bron Breakker vs. CM Punk.
That’s the type of conversation we’ve had where you potentially go to this city, or if there’s a big matchup, can you let us know three, four, five weeks in advance so we can start promoting that outside of the PLEs. They’ve been very receptive of that.
The comments come amid ongoing fan frustration over content edits on Raw’s Netflix broadcasts, including a recent incident where blood was blurred out during a backstage Usos segment. Despite that friction from viewers, Spitzer’s remarks suggest content restrictions aren’t a major sticking point between the two companies behind the scenes.
