Reported by Adam Martin of WrestleView.com
On Wednesday, August 31, 2005 at 6:57 PM EST

WWE issued the following press release today:

WWE's New Friday Night SmackDown! Aims to Change Friday Night Viewing Habits

STAMFORD, Conn., August 31, 2005 – WWE’s SmackDown! moves from Thursday to Friday on UPN, starting September 9 at 8 p.m. ET. It debuts with a new name, Friday Night SmackDown!, and the ambition to spark a viewer renaissance for network TV on Fridays.

“WWE SmackDown! made its mark with male teen, 18-to 34-year-old, and Hispanic viewers on Thursday nights, and we intend to move those audiences to Fridays” said Kurt Schneider, Executive Vice President, Marketing. “Beyond that, our aim is to grow our audience and to expand the number of people watching TV on Friday evenings. Friday Night SmackDown! is going to fill a programming void that will lead the charge by the networks to make Friday night destination viewing for a larger part of America.”

WWE is putting forward an aggressive “TV That’s Changing Friday Nights” marketing campaign in September to ensure that the public follows the show from Thursdays to Fridays and to incite new viewers. WWE’s campaign features a mix of national and guerrilla media tactics and an equally aggressive web campaign on WWE.com, which now attracts nearly 10 million unique visitors monthly.

National promotional spots will be seen on DirecTV, on UPN affiliates, SmackDown! and related WWE programs. Radio spots will be aired in the top 12 markets starting the week leading up to the move to Fridays. Web advertisements will run on AOL, EA Games, Gorilla Nation, Gamespot and IGN. A special retail presence is being created at the Toys “R” Us flagship store in Times Square in New York City that also will promote the move to Fridays.

Guerrilla tactics include contests Friday Night SmackDown! viewing parties to be hosted by local radio stations in the top 12 markets. WWE will brand bus exteriors and interiors and subway entrances in the top 5 markets.

Content on WWE.com will offer articles on new characters, and on how SmackDown! Superstars view the move to Fridays and what they consider to be their greatest SmackDown! moments. Memorable moments from SmackDown! and wallpaper promoting the move to Fridays also will be featured.

UPN is supporting the move with a series of targeted tune-in tactics, including 30-second spots on cable, a 25-market radio sweepstakes, and promotional spots and eyeliners in relevant programming on the network. UPN is also working with other Viacom companies to further drive awareness, includingrunning30-second promotional spotsatParamount Parks throughout the month of September. UPN affiliates are also working with the WWE's corporate affiliate marketing teamon a series of customized local promotional programs.

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) is an integrated media and entertainment company headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto and London. Additional information on the company can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com.