[Emperor Smeat]

Dirtsheets:

WWE released their Q4 2013 and Full Year financial results on Thursday morning. Here are the final pay-per-view buy rates: Battleground in October: 114,000 Hell in a Cell in October: 228,000 (up from 199,000 in 2012) Survivor Series in November: 177,000 (down from 208,000 in 2012) TLC in December: 181,000 (up from 175,000 in 2012) The buyrate for Hell in a Cell was the show’s best since it debuted in 2009 – and the Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton main event outdrew the John Cena vs. Randy Orton WWE World Heavyweight Championship Unification match by a wide margin (26%).

They are really excited about the WWE Network going live on Monday. Regarding pay-per-views, Vince says most standard providers have agreed to carry WrestleMania XXX and after that it will be on an event-by-event basis. They believe that a fully distributed WWE Network can attract between 2 and 3 million subscribers. WWE expects a $12-$15 million first quarter loss this year due to everything that comes with the launch of the Network. WWE's first report on the number of Network subscribers will come the Monday after WrestleMania XXX. They spent around $12 million in 2013 preparing for the Network. An investor asked about CM Punk. Vince said: "He's taking a sabbatical, let's just put it that way."

Originally Posted by Observer Rey Mysterio's contract is the next major WWE deal to expire, in about two months or so. Rey has one of the highest downsides but is also one of the biggest merchandise movers for the company. Usually at this point WWE officials would be aggressively trying to get Rey to sign a new deal but that has not really been the case. Speaking of Mysterio, the reason he was booked on Northern California shows last weekend instead of his hometown San Diego is because officials felt he's been booked too often in San Diego. San Diego ended up drawing the worst crowd of last week.