Tony Khan hopes to find a long-term solution for AEW on a streaming platform.
Recently, while speaking to Liam Crowley for Comicbook.com, the AEW President Tony Khan discussed what the future of the company would look like with regards to its streaming rights.
Tony Khan also mentioned that he wants to acquire a deal with HBO Max and wants a deal that will provide a home for All Elite Wrestling for a long time.
“We’ll have to see [If AEW All In: London will be streamed on Max]. I think we are actively negotiating right now and at that point, we’ll be deep in the conversations. So, it’s hard to say this year. I think certainly going forward, that’s a good possibility for us and something I would be really excited about would be bringing AEW to Max. And it’s something I think we’ve talked about. It just has to make sense for everybody. And I do think when we find a streaming home for AEW, that’s going to be a long-term plan.
“And given that we’re up at the end of this year, I think one of the reasons I’ve wanted to wait is I think when we get the streaming contract figured out, it should be a long-term solution for the fans so that everybody who’s waited so long to see this.”
Tony Khan truly believes in the quality of his shows
Khan also reflected on the Jacksonville-based promotion’s success throughout it’s existance.
“It’s amazing what we’ve accomplished in five years. Not only some of the best pay-per-views of the last several decades but I think honestly, some of the best pay-per-views, I’ve ever seen. And I’m biased, but I really believe in the quality of the big events that we’ve done. I think a lot of people would attest to the quality of those shows. We’ve done over 230 episodes of Wednesday Night Dynamite. Well over a 100 episodes of Friday Night Rampage. And coming up on one year of Collision.”
Tony Khan on why the Ring of Honor library is great
“I also acquired the Ring of Honor library a couple of years ago. And there’s so many great events and great stars in there. A lot of the great wrestlers of the last 20 years and also a lot of great stars who are in AEW right now as well as people wrestling right now some of the big stars that are not in AEW. So it’s a very very lucrative collection that I acquired. And there’s a lot of great wrestling there, in addition to all the great footage we built in AEW. The library is a big part of it.”
Tony Khan also believes that HBO: Max is one of the greatest streaming services all over the globe
“But also, as you alluded to, probably the thing that would drive the most interest potentially would be are major events. And having access to those on such a streaming platform. And Max is one of the greatest streaming platforms in the world. I think it has the best collection of content anywhere in the world, and we’d love to be a part of it. And it’s something we’re actively talking about.
Tony Khan on his relationship with Warner Brothers. Discover
“We have a really really strong relationship with the current, Warner Brothers. Discover management. There have been a lot of changes at Warner Brothers Discovery since we came. In fact, when we came, it was still Warner Brothers… Warner Media. And the family from Discovery that has come in, they’re big AEW fans and Mr. Zasloff and Kathleen Finch, Bruce Campbell, and Jason Sanus. They have all been very very kind and we’ve had great meetings with all of them.
“And they’ve all taken a major interest in AEW, the pay-per-views, the streaming concepts, and the television shows. That’s why they also, this year increased AEWs’s content. Given us two more hours of television which has been great. Our pay-per-views have been stronger than ever and it’s allowed us to launch more pay-per-views, to build more stories. To do more great matches on TV every week. From three hours of TV with Wednesday Night Dynamite like tonight and Friday Night Rampage, now adding Saturday Night Collision, it’s been tremendous. Some of the best matches in wrestling. And some of the best moments in wrestling over the past year have been on Collision. And we’re going to keep that going.”
Tony Khan is looking forward to renewing AEW’s media rights
“And something that we are really really excited about going forward is obviously the opportunity to renew our media rights and look for where we’re going to be doing these shows and certainly there’s no better place for us than where we are right now. It’s tremendous being able to do wrestling every Wednesday night like tonight on TBS. And Fridays and Saturdays on TNT. I’m glad you asked about it because Max certainly is my streaming platform of choice. And would be a great home for AEW.
“I hope that at the end of 2024, the fans feel like this was a great year for AEW and the excitement is there going into 2025, most importantly for all the people that work here and for all the fans, we need to get a great media rights deal in place and secure the future of AEW for many many years to come. And I think that’s really important and that’s what we are going to do.”
Is HBO Max the right destination for AEW?
