If you are in the United Kingdom and are a subscriber to the WWE Network then it’s time to get ready because Peacock is on its way across the pond.
Comcast, the parent company of NBC Universal which owns the Peacock streaming service, had its second-quarter conference call with investors recently. The company’s CEO Brian Roberts updated the investors on the number of subscribers to Peacock which took over from the WWE Network in the US earlier this year.
Deadline has reported that Roberts confirmed Peacock currently has 54 million sign-ups with 20 million active accounts. These numbers were 50% higher than the company’s last forecast in the spring and come amidst financial results for the company that have defied some expectations.
Roberts stated:
“The third quarter thus far has been a particularly strong period. We will work hard to manage retention and grow from here, recognizing we are unlikely to replicate such tremendous performance, but we remain optimistic.”
Brian Roberts then went onto confirm that Peacock will hit its first international territories in a matter of months. In the UK and Europe, Sky will implement the streaming service as part of its offering to its 20 million customers at no additional cost.
Deadline adds that there was no word on how many of these customers have signed up to the Peacock premium service but says insiders have told them it is a mere fraction of the customer base.
The WWE Network in the United States switched over fully to Peacock earlier in 2021 but the move has had a mixed response from wrestling fans. Not all the content that was available on the WWE Network is yet available on Peacock and there have been complaints about the reliability of the service during big shows, most recently the Money In The Bank pay-per-view.
Currently, in the United Kingdom, WWE programming airs on BT Sports after that company took the rights from Sky which had aired WWE programming from its inception in 1989.