X has introduced a brand new, unique content material take care of the WWE, including extra video programming into its rising slate of reveals.

As per the announcement, WWE will air a brand new, weekly present on X which can characteristic timed matches between fashionable WWE stars.

That might carry plenty of WWE followers to the app, relying on which stars are included on this program. X has additionally famous that in 2023, dialog about wrestling elevated 11% year-over-year.

I imply, it’s troublesome to quantify these outcomes precisely, as X appears to have modified a few of its measurements, however WWE is clearly fashionable within the app, with 13.7 million customers following the primary WWE account.

As famous, the brand new program will add to X’s rising slate of authentic content material, because it strikes to turn out to be a “video first platform”.

To this point, X has signed unique video content material offers with:

• Paris Hilton, on a but to be introduced undertaking
• Tucker Carlson, whose interviews are repeatedly producing thousands and thousands of views within the app
• Don Lemon, who’ll start airing his new “Don Lemon Present” quickly
• Tulsi Gabbard, who’s creating a collection of documentary-style packages centered on U.S. politics
• Jim Rome, who’s bringing his fashionable “The Jungle” present to the app, airing 5 occasions per week

Along with this, X can also be working to incentivize high on-line creators to put up to the app via improved advert income share offers, which it’s presently testing with YouTube star MrBeast, who’s re-posted a few of his clips on X.

Provided that MrBeast generates nearly all of his revenue from YouTube, I don’t anticipate him to make the swap to X completely, although having any of his content material within the app provides to its programming slate, and X will likely be hoping that he could make sufficient advert income within the app to then pique the curiosity of different creators.

Controversial podcast host Joe Rogan can also be trying to re-share his content material to X, which might embrace video of his broadcasts, whereas it could even be noteworthy that Elon Musk will reportedly be a visitor of UFC CEO Dana White at this weekend’s “UFC Apex” in Las Vegas.

So whereas it will not be a killer slate of other video content material as but, X is constructing out its roster over time, whereas it’s additionally experimenting with a brand new, devoted video tab within the app which might assist to additional spotlight its programming.

After all, Twitter earlier than Elon additionally tried this similar strategy, with blended outcomes.

Again in 2016, Twitter made an enormous push on TV-like content material, signing unique contracts with the MLB, NFL, and NBA to broadcast video games immediately within the app. That was a part of a broader effort to attach the rise in dwell occasion tweeting with the supply materials. Twitter’s analysis had proven that it was the highest vacation spot for on-line engagement round dwell sports activities occasions and TV packages, and its view had been that if it might mix the 2, it might then be capable to construct an leisure powerhouse, capitalizing on each the content material and the dialog in a single stream.

Nevertheless it didn’t work.

For no matter purpose, customers weren’t overly enamored by having tweets and the present working side-by-side, which might come right down to the truth that solely a comparatively small variety of folks really use Twitter, so proscribing the content material to a smaller viewers by bringing in app decreased general engagement.

Issues, nonetheless, have modified since.

Social platforms are actually greater sources of leisure in their very own proper, versus simply the associated dialogue, and possibly, provided that extra persons are consuming extra content material direct in social apps, the time is now proper for X to make this new push, which might present considerably greater promoting alternatives.

Signing controversial content material additionally helps to spice up Elon’s “free speech” agenda within the app, and it does look like X will likely be trying to play an even bigger position in political dialogue throughout the upcoming election cycle via its video programming.

I assume, the query then will likely be what occurs after, particularly if advertisers proceed to steer clear of the app.

Elon’s long-held view is that it doesn’t actually matter what he says, or what anybody else shares within the app, as long as it brings folks in, as a result of whereas companies are eager to behave principled on sure issues, all they actually care about is their very own backside line. And if X can get to, say, a billion customers, they’ll need to promote within the app, whether or not they prefer it or not, as a result of the viewers attain will merely be too massive to disregard, if X can win over that sort of consideration.

It nonetheless appears unlikely that X can try this, however the X group will likely be hoping that this new unique content material push would be the key to creating this a actuality, drawing in so many viewers throughout so many subject areas that it’ll merely turn out to be too compelling a draw for advert companions.

Once more, previous expertise doesn’t bode effectively for this technique, and X’s determination to give attention to sure broadcasters and content material might restrict its potential both approach.

However that’s the hope, and including an unique WWE program into the combo is actually a optimistic step.