Warner Bros. Discovery Reportedly Wants Massive Change to AEW's Pay-Per-View Schedule

All Elite Wrestling is in active negotiations with Warner Bros. Discovery. The young wrestling company has utilized WBD as its broadcast partner since its inception in 2019, but that initial deal is set to expire at some point before the end of 2023. Despite the lack of extension at this point in time, things appear to be trending upwards for AEW and WBD's future, as numerous reports have indicated that the entertainment industry giant is largely satisfied with its wrestling partnership. That said, WBD reportedly wants to make some changes before proceeding further with AEW.

According to Fightful Select, one of the "major proposals" from WBD to AEW would have the company "significantly expanding" its pay-per-view calendar. The report adds that there is no word on whether this would be more standalone, traditional pay-per-views like how AEW has operated its quarterly special events on Bleacher Report Live, or if they would be part of a possible streaming deal with MAX. 

AEW currently has five annual pay-per-view events:

• AEW Revolution – March
• AEW Double or Nothing – May
• AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door – June
• AEW All Out – August/September
• AEW Full Gear – November

It's worth noting that a sixth show, AEW ALL IN: London, is happening this year, taking place on August 27th. It's currently unclear as to if ALL IN will turn into an annual event or if it is just a one-off. AEW President Tony Khan has yet to announce how ALL IN will be viewed, which has led to many speculating that it will be the company's first streamed event on MAX.

An increased pay-per-view calendar would see AEW programming operate somewhat similarly to WWE's, in that they use a much more contained span of time to build to its events. When WWE was on pay-per-view exclusively, it typically had 4-5 weeks of television to build to their monthly events. Now rebranded as "premium live events" due to them airing on streaming, WWE has anywhere from 4-8 weeks between big shows.

Today, WWE has significantly downscaled its PLE's when it comes to content. All shows are usually under three hours, which means not every champion or top star appears on every show. WWE reserves its "big five" to showcase all of its top talent, while the "B-shows" put a bigger spotlight on midcard wrestlers. AEW could look to do the same, with its aforementioned five current PPVs being the all hands on deck shows while a new slate of B-shows focus more on its lower card stars and titles.

Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for updates on AEW's ongoing negotiations with WBD.