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#2 Tying Superstars to longer, more lucrative contracts
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At the height of their dominance of the wrestling industry, WWE was generally happy to grant lower card Superstars a release from their contract if they were unhappy in the company. After all, the promotion felt that there were very few places - other than WWE - where a performer could go to make a real mark in the wrestling industry.
In fact, even future AEW executives Cody and Brandi Rhodes were allowed to walk away from their WWE contracts in 2016, after Cody expressed his frustration at the way he was being used in the company.
Look who just shut down all of Tony Khan's critics! More HERE.
WWE's attitude to Superstar releases took a sharp turn in 2019, though, with many performers being held to their contracts. Acts such as Mike Kanellis, Rusev and The Revival all revealed publicly that they had asked for their releases - and each had their requests refused.
Ironically, many of these performers got their releases in April this year, but it took the financial impact of a global health pandemic for WWE to agree to their departure. Far from being willing to release Superstars, WWE have actively tried to entice many performers to put pen to paper on highly-paid, long-term contracts.
Potential AEW target AJ Styles announced on Twitter that he had signed a new deal with WWE in March last year, which is expected to see him through to near the end of his in-ring career. The Revival, though, reportedly each turned down offers of $1 million per year to remain in WWE, opting instead to join AEW last month under the name "FTR".
The former Revival were rarely seriously pushed in WWE. Yet, the company still felt it was worth a hefty sum to try and keep the pair away from AEW. Although WWE failed to do that, it is likely that they will be able to persuade many performers to stay loyal to them - as long as the contract is lucrative.
The presence of AEW has shifted power away from WWE when it comes to contract negotiations. That can only be a good thing when it comes to performers negotiating new deals in the future.
