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On 24 January 1988, WWE put their very first Royal Rumble on the USA Network for nothing. It was completely free to anyone who had access to this channel.
Back then, they looked odd doing it. Nobody could understand why such a large event was being broadcast for free. However, this needs context. Bunkhouse Stampede (a rival event) was on pay-per-view the same night.
Nobody was being generous. Both companies were buying attention. One company just covered the costs, and the other expected costs to be paid.
Greatness Acknowledged! ☝????@TheGarden @jalenbrunson1 pic.twitter.com/YJ69EBCPVc
— Roman Reigns (@WWERomanReigns) July 19, 2026
In November 1987, WWE put the first Survivor Series on pay-per-view on Thanksgiving night, opposite Starrcade, which was Jim Crockett Promotions’ largest event.
At the time, cable operators were told they could only have WrestleMania IV in the spring if they took the Survivor Series. WrestleMania was the most profitable night of the year, so most of them dropped Starrcade.
The industry objected, and McMahon was warned off scheduling against the NWA again. In January, however, he found a way around it. Crockett had the Bunkhouse Stampede booked for the 24th on pay-per-view, so WWE put its first Royal Rumble opposite it on USA Network, free to anyone with basic cable.
It worked, and worked well. The Rumble drew a reported 8.2 rating. Bunkhouse Stampede, however, only had about 200,000 buys, which was considered a weak return for the owners. WWE then charged for it in 1989. They got the audience's attention for free and put on such a great show that they kept them coming back, despite the extra payment.
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Giving this show away for free was tough for WWE as they had little to no cash reserves already. However, it paid and paid well. This is what arguably kicked off WWE as we know it today.
That one single marketing move gave it the momentum it needed to grab the attention of fans in the US. Now, WWE generates around $359 million per quarter. They’ve built a global empire, and it all started from giving something away for free.
None of this is unique to WWE. The pattern actually shows up in multiple areas of business. Amazon, for example, gives a month of Prime away for free. The idea is to get people to use the service, realise they can’t live without it, and get them to continually pay.
Casino operators do the same with reload bonuses. Bonus free spins are usually given, for example, 80 a week or something like that. The goal is to keep users coming back to try their luck.
Even banks do it. They’ll happily give someone a sign-up bonus if they’re switching from a competitor's bank. Some even give up to three figures for making the switch.
As you can see, everybody does the same thing. They give something for free in the hopes you’ll come back later. Why? Because it works.
In 2021, the Network moved to Peacock, where it is behind an ad-supported tier or an ad-free tier.
Netflix has now taken it under a 10-year deal, which is great for a lot of viewers. Many already have Netflix, so there isn't an additional cost for most fans.
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