Excitement and anticipation was in the air in the UK this past Monday where WWE Network was finally due to launch, offering a free month of full access including the upcoming Survivor Series pay per view. This was perhaps especially great news for Xbox One & PS4 WWE gamers who may be feeling a little left out while they eagerly await the recently released WWE 2K15 to come to current-gen consoles in 2 weeks.
After being excluded from the “global launch” in 170 countries in August, then having a proposed October launch delayed, many UK WWE fans expressed their anger and disappointment when the plug was pulled yet again on Monday, a mere 20 minutes before launch. WWE Network in the UK was delayed “until further notice”, with no explanation.
Speculation has been that negotiations on a partnership deal are still ongoing with BSkyB, who were set to continue being the exclusive broadcaster of WWE in the UK & Ireland until 2019, although Sky have maintained that the decision to postpone the launch was entirely WWE’s decision.
Showing commitment to one of the WWE’s most important markets, Vince McMahon has released a video today to personally apologise, assuring UK fans that WWE Network is coming and that it will be worth the wait.
“On behalf of WWE, I want to personally apologise for the delayed launch of the WWE Network here in the United Kingdom.
There’s no-one more important than each and every one of you in the WWE Universe, especially here in the United Kingdom, where we’ve shared so many great memories together. We appreciate your patience as we work through the details, and the roll-out and potential partnerships.
I assure you that we are working day and night to launch WWE Network as quickly as possible, and I promise that WWE Network will be well worth the wait. Again, thank you for your understanding.”