WWF
...cert. This is the era where the Hulkamaniacs were born, MachoMan Randy Savage’s Flying elbow drop from turnbuckle, the monstrous Andre the “Giant”, the almighty “Ultimate Warrior”, Jake the “Snake”, “Nature Boy”Ric Flair and so on adding to the lists of more personas and soap operas. WWF was flying high time in the industry and yet no one saw that one day, Vince’s strength has turned on him and become the biggest threat. The Problems Enter World Championships Wrestling (WCW) As Vince was flying high time in the late 80’s and early 90’s, he saw no threat of other industry coming in as a rival as barriers of entry were high. WWF enjoy its positioned as the dominant supplier of Sports Entertainment to TV Networks. The Network itself becomes the threat. Ted Turner, a southern tycoon owner of Turner Network saw the opportunity to grab a piece of the pie. Vince was eating it all up by himself and Ted wants the share of it. WCW started in the early 90’s employing ex-WWF superstar Nature Boy Ric Flair, Sting and Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat as the main lineup of players. Vince did not see any potential threat from WCW, as he believed that it is just another cheap copycat of the industry. Using its own network to broadcast it shows from MGM studios in Disney World, WCW rating was low and audience were mainly visitors of Disneyland. Employing mainly disgruntle employees of WWF, WCW is both un-attractive and low quality. Enter Eric Bischoff, the man behind the greatest rivalry among competing sellers. Principle of Competitive Markets stated “Competitive Jockeying among rival firm is a dynamic, everchanging process as new offensive and defensive moves are initiated and emphasis swings from one blend of competitive weapons and tactics to another” Eric Bischoff was the man behind the principle of Sports Entertainment Competition Market. Bischoff identified opportunities in the market. Ironically what becomes opportunity for WCW becomes the biggest threat for WWF. Bischoff’s identified opportunities/ Vince’s WWF threats : 1. There are plenty of disgruntle senior employees of WWF There were numbers of WWF employees that was seeking better pays and working condition. Being the monopoly in the market, Vince did not pay to mush attention about the well being of his employees. Strict schedules forcing many WWF stars work in constant pressure. 2. Turner’s “Green Light” of spending spree Bischoff went on to offer lucrative contracts to top players offering more digits and less working hours. This would definitely get more response from WWF top players. 3. Young Bloods eager to enter the Sports Entertainment Industry New generations of young wrestlers came up hoping to make a difference in the industry. Many-used WCW as a stepping-stone and Bischoff saw no problem with it. This young blood eventually becomes the future success of WCW. 4. New storylines for Wrestling fans Too long has the story of WWF involved the “Good Vs Evil”. Bischoff employed the idea of Evil Vs Evil. Porter’s Five Forces Model of Competition indicates that rivalry among competing sellers as the strongest of the five competitive forces (Supplier Inputs – the freelance promoters, Substitution-smaller backyard entertainers like ECW, Buyers pressure- audiences always wanting more and New Entrants- WCW). WCW came as both new entrants threat and rivalry stage. Now there are several common factors identified by Thompson and Strickland from Porter’s Competitive Strategy and one of the biggest influence for WCW to compete in such intense measures because it costs more to get out of business than to stay and compete in the sports entertainment market and the fact that Ted Turner owns the distribution channels. How big a threat was to the WWF when WCW went into the professional wrestling business? Very small as Vince himself in the interview noted, “….It is good for you Ted but I’m in the entertainment business. Big Difference!”. Eric Bischoff? If size does matter then Bischoff was the “Godzilla” of threats. The End of Old and the Start of New Bret “The Goodman” Hart At the late 1995, the era of “Hulkamaniacs” was over in WWF. Hulk Hogan went on taking the contract from WCW adding to their pillar of strengths. Bret Hart was the next big thing in WWF. Excellence of execution with the work discipline and ethics made Bret Hart what he was that day. Fans loved the “Sharp Shooter” executed his move in the ring and his bout with other WWF superstar is a sold out! When the contract expired in 1996 it was important for Vince to hold Bret in the show as fans come to see the excellence of execution. Bret Hart was the strength of WWF and the next-door opportunity for Vince to bounce its strategy against Bischoff WCW Nitro. Bret decided to take on another 3 years contract in the ring and guarantee 17 years desk job in the office. At the same time WCW Eric Bischoff was planning huge marketing strategies to secure a competitive advantage in the business. Having almost the top players from WWF, Bischoff next strategy was to give what the audience want…”Evil Vs Evil”. Characters from WCW are neither good nor…good. It is the evil empire against another evil pact. N W O was created, a legion of doom fighting in the most despicable way to win the bout and fans love it. Fans started to cheer for the bad guys in WCW and the table is turning the same way in WWF. Austin 3:16 “Cause Stone Cold Said So!” was the next big thing in WWF leaving the era of Bret “Goodman” Hart is over. Hart went to become a villain but that strategy doesn’t seem to work. Hart is just too good to be bad! After only one year of resigning Bret, Vince went on to release the Hitman to WCW. Hitman’s new character proved to be a poor return for the industry and fans no longer wanting to see the good guys versus bad guys match no more. Vince had to release Bret, as it was a poor investment. Vince was finding opportunities within “attitude” characters like Stone Cold, The Undertaker, the psychotic Kane, ultimate fighting championship belt holder Ken Shamrock and sex appeals to attract more audiences. Vince decision was justified insisting Bret Hart to lose the final match, as Shawn Michaels was the next investment in the business. D-Generation X was born that year leaving Shawn Michaels as the leader of the group. D-Generation X was the answer of WWF to WCW’s N W O. A legion of wrestlers fighting in its dirtiest way to satisfy the new “demand” of audiences. Hart, unable to accept the tradition and the legacy that he had created was torn by “attitude” characters with no respects and rules about the game and especially involving sexism in the scripts. “It was no longer a show that children could watch and admire about,” noted by Bret Hart in an interview with CBC in Montreal Canada 2002 . Bret refused to go along with the script fearing that the Excellence of Execution will fades away eventually. Vince as the owner of the company is responsible for the survival of the business needed something new to boost the rating and “Hitman” character was not doing the job as consumer taste changes over time. Replacing the character with something newer and bolder was the only gamble that Vince could take as the “Wolf Pact” N W O is eating WWF ratings alive. Vince believed the character “Hitman” is no longer strength for the company but merely a weakness that in long term would become a threat in company’s financial condition. December 1997 marked the end of Bret “The Goodman” Hart era and beginning of D-Generation X the answer to all Vince’s prayer. Does it have to end? Releasing Bret Hart from a twenty-year contract for only a year was probably the best or the worst decision that Vince had ever made for the company. Bret was undoubtedly the best asset that WWF had back in the 1996 and 1997 before the termination of the contract. On the other hand the company was on the verge of collapsed and Vince felt Bret Hart contract has become a cancer to the company. The character “Hitman” was the core competencies for WWF replacing the era of Hulkamaniacs in the 1980’s. The Excellence of Execution shows the quality of classical wrestling to the audiences. Unfortunately, ratings speak otherwise the era of “Hitman” Hart was over. The legacy left by Bret Hart was fading away and the era of Austin 3:16 and D-Generation X proved to be the next core competencies in the future WWF. There was no other way for Vince but to lose Bret Hart to WCW. The dispute between Hart and Vince is the example of why Vince still “do not believed in the gentleman’s agreement”. Bret “The Hitman” character must go in order for the industry to stay alive. But Bret himself does not need to walk away. Better Solutions! Although Vince still believed that he had done the right thing by letting Bret Hart to WCW in 1997, it is still such a shame to lose such a legacy. Vince did realize his mistake by letting Hart to the other side by not letting the other core competencies of the company off. One prime example of another fallen character was Mick Foley “Cactus Jack”. Vince was determined that Mick Foley is a respected wrestler that worked really hard and the loyalty was unquestionable. Famous to go beyond “extreme” in wrestling. Mick was the Godfather of Extreme Wrestling where everything goes. Blood and crunching bones was everyday gimmick for “Cactus Jack” in Japan and Europe back then. But slowly the character was slipping away replaced by “att...