IMPACT Wrestling Announces New Network, Leaving POP TV In January
IMPACT Wrestling issued the following release, announcing they will be joining the Pursuit Channel on January 11th:
IMPACT WRESTLING & PURSUIT CHANNEL ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT TO TELEVISE IMPACT! NATIONALLY ACROSS THE U.S.
IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp., announced today it has entered into an agreement to broadcast its flagship weekly two-hour program IMPACT! nationally across the U.S. on Pursuit Channel, the most widely distributed outdoor network and one of the fastest growing channels in the country.
Beginning on Friday, Jan. 11, featuring the aftermath of Homecoming, IMPACT Wrestling’s first marquee pay-per-view event of the year, IMPACT! will air weekly on Pursuit Channel on Friday nights at 10:00 p.m. ET.
“Pursuit Channel is a natural fit for IMPACT!” said Ed Nordholm, president of IMPACT Wrestling. “It has a passionate viewership base that correlates strongly with our core audience, and is one of the few broadcast destinations that is expanding its footprint, enjoying a 15% increase in broadcast distribution this year alone. With IMPACT Wrestling coming off a tremendous year of audience growth globally and positive fan engagement, we look forward to leveraging our respective resources to bring fans more of the wrestling content they want to see: tougher, edgier action.”
“Pursuit Channel is pleased to welcome IMPACT Wrestling into our Friday night lineup of popular shows,” said Rusty Faulk, CEO and founder of Pursuit Channel. “IMPACT Wrestling programming is perfect for our audience, which enjoys adventurous content to feed their wild side. We look forward to a long partnership and providing our fans with new and exciting world-class content while expanding IMPACT Wrestling’s audience to a new base.”
Showcasing top professional wrestling stars such as IMPACT World Champion Johnny Impact, who starred in the most recent season of the hit CBS show Survivor, plus Brian Cage, Eli Drake, Moose, Eddie Edwards, Sami Callihan, Pentagon Jr., Fenix, Rich Swann, the high-flying X-Division and the Knockouts, including Champion Tessa Blanchard, Taya Valkyrie, Rosemary, Allie and Su Yung, IMPACT! has been a leading destination for professional wrestling fans, televised globally in 120 countries since its inception in 2002, while growing its popularity and reach on YouTube, Twitch, Pluto and social media platforms.
It’s worth noting that Pursuit is owned by Anthem Sports & Entertainment CEO Leonard Asper, who acquired the network back in 2012. According to the network website, he joined the Pursuit management team that “created brand awareness for the network inside the television industry and Wall Street.”
IMPACT had aired on POP TV since January 5th 2006 when it debuted on Tuesday nights. The show then moved to Thursday nights where it aired at 8 p.m. EST, and more recently starting at 10 p.m. EST. The move to a new night is not the first time IMPACT has aired on Fridays; the show aired on Friday towards the end of its run on Destination America, and when it was on FOX Sports Net back in 2004-05.
IMPACT Wrestling is still scheduled to air a new episode on January 3rd; last night’s show and next week’s are ‘best of 2018’ episodes.
I've been watching TNA since it started being on TV but I don't have this new channel so I guess it's over for me as a fan
Edit:
Never mind I found it on directv channel 604 I'm back in
Edit:
Update:
Mike Johnson of PW Insiderreports that IMPACT Wrestling‘s new television deal with Anthem‘s Pursuit Channel will not be an exclusive deal. According to Johnson, “The Pursuit move is being seen as a way for Impact to take a breather and not have to worry about where the show will air as they still try to pursue a larger scale deal. With Anthem having interest in Pursuit, it was an easy move for the series to make and should Impact find a more beneficial network, home, they would have the ability to shift the series elsewhere. If that happens (and of course, it’s a big if), Pursuit has already shown interest in carrying other Impact programming, including potentially Xplosion or a Best of series. The network is happy to have Impact, feeling that their audience demographic would also want to watch pro wrestling.”
Johnson adds that IMPACT Wrestling saw changes at POP(rebranding and a shifting television lineup) as potential trouble and decided to leave on their own and retain a positive relationship with the company in lieu of getting pulled from the network altogether. Johnson also notes that Impact will likely move to Fridays at 10PM on the Fight Network in Canada. There are no current plans to air replays on Pursuit HD. Johnson notes, “Impact realizes that the move to Pursuit will see them lose a portion of their former viewership and while some in the company are spinning this as a positive, others are not as happy, feeling it was another step downward in prestige. The company is working on potential ways for the Impact Wrestling weekly series to be seen on digital platforms, but nothing has been worked out as of this writing.”
IMPACT Wrestling issued the following release, announcing they will be joining the Pursuit Channel on January 11th:
IMPACT WRESTLING & PURSUIT CHANNEL ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT TO TELEVISE IMPACT! NATIONALLY ACROSS THE U.S.
IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp., announced today it has entered into an agreement to broadcast its flagship weekly two-hour program IMPACT! nationally across the U.S. on Pursuit Channel, the most widely distributed outdoor network and one of the fastest growing channels in the country.
Beginning on Friday, Jan. 11, featuring the aftermath of Homecoming, IMPACT Wrestling’s first marquee pay-per-view event of the year, IMPACT! will air weekly on Pursuit Channel on Friday nights at 10:00 p.m. ET.
“Pursuit Channel is a natural fit for IMPACT!” said Ed Nordholm, president of IMPACT Wrestling. “It has a passionate viewership base that correlates strongly with our core audience, and is one of the few broadcast destinations that is expanding its footprint, enjoying a 15% increase in broadcast distribution this year alone. With IMPACT Wrestling coming off a tremendous year of audience growth globally and positive fan engagement, we look forward to leveraging our respective resources to bring fans more of the wrestling content they want to see: tougher, edgier action.”
“Pursuit Channel is pleased to welcome IMPACT Wrestling into our Friday night lineup of popular shows,” said Rusty Faulk, CEO and founder of Pursuit Channel. “IMPACT Wrestling programming is perfect for our audience, which enjoys adventurous content to feed their wild side. We look forward to a long partnership and providing our fans with new and exciting world-class content while expanding IMPACT Wrestling’s audience to a new base.”
Showcasing top professional wrestling stars such as IMPACT World Champion Johnny Impact, who starred in the most recent season of the hit CBS show Survivor, plus Brian Cage, Eli Drake, Moose, Eddie Edwards, Sami Callihan, Pentagon Jr., Fenix, Rich Swann, the high-flying X-Division and the Knockouts, including Champion Tessa Blanchard, Taya Valkyrie, Rosemary, Allie and Su Yung, IMPACT! has been a leading destination for professional wrestling fans, televised globally in 120 countries since its inception in 2002, while growing its popularity and reach on YouTube, Twitch, Pluto and social media platforms.
It’s worth noting that Pursuit is owned by Anthem Sports & Entertainment CEO Leonard Asper, who acquired the network back in 2012. According to the network website, he joined the Pursuit management team that “created brand awareness for the network inside the television industry and Wall Street.”
IMPACT had aired on POP TV since January 5th 2006 when it debuted on Tuesday nights. The show then moved to Thursday nights where it aired at 8 p.m. EST, and more recently starting at 10 p.m. EST. The move to a new night is not the first time IMPACT has aired on Fridays; the show aired on Friday towards the end of its run on Destination America, and when it was on FOX Sports Net back in 2004-05.
IMPACT Wrestling is still scheduled to air a new episode on January 3rd; last night’s show and next week’s are ‘best of 2018’ episodes.
I've been watching TNA since it started being on TV but I don't have this new channel so I guess it's over for me as a fan
Edit:
Never mind I found it on directv channel 604 I'm back in
Edit:
Update:
Mike Johnson of PW Insiderreports that IMPACT Wrestling‘s new television deal with Anthem‘s Pursuit Channel will not be an exclusive deal. According to Johnson, “The Pursuit move is being seen as a way for Impact to take a breather and not have to worry about where the show will air as they still try to pursue a larger scale deal. With Anthem having interest in Pursuit, it was an easy move for the series to make and should Impact find a more beneficial network, home, they would have the ability to shift the series elsewhere. If that happens (and of course, it’s a big if), Pursuit has already shown interest in carrying other Impact programming, including potentially Xplosion or a Best of series. The network is happy to have Impact, feeling that their audience demographic would also want to watch pro wrestling.”
Johnson adds that IMPACT Wrestling saw changes at POP(rebranding and a shifting television lineup) as potential trouble and decided to leave on their own and retain a positive relationship with the company in lieu of getting pulled from the network altogether. Johnson also notes that Impact will likely move to Fridays at 10PM on the Fight Network in Canada. There are no current plans to air replays on Pursuit HD. Johnson notes, “Impact realizes that the move to Pursuit will see them lose a portion of their former viewership and while some in the company are spinning this as a positive, others are not as happy, feeling it was another step downward in prestige. The company is working on potential ways for the Impact Wrestling weekly series to be seen on digital platforms, but nothing has been worked out as of this writing.”
Last edited:
