GCW owner Brett Lauderdale addressed the TrillerTV situation on social media after AEW filed a lawsuit against the platform for over $5 million in unpaid revenue.
On Twitter, Lauderdale explained that TrillerTV (formerly FITE TV) still works well and still has subscribers paying monthly, but the core problem is that all the money it earns goes straight into the wallet of its China-based parent company, which then moves that money wherever it wants and ignores its streaming partners.
Lauderdale believes TrillerTV will eventually be sold once a court frees it from the parent company’s control, and confirmed that GCW will keep streaming on the platform until GCW itself decides otherwise. He tweeted,
“People (and other promoters) ask me all the time whats going on with “triller”, so let me attempt to translate Brandon’s article a little further, in plainer terms:
TrillerTV/TrillerTV+ is basically the artist formerly known as FiteTV (flipps media), its the wrestling wing of the umbrella/parent company and operates mostly independently of the rest of the parent company (TRILLER)…The TrillerTV (fite) platform/app still works great and…
it still has a sizeable monthly subscriber base & accompanying revenue (in addition to the standalone ppvs). The ‘issue’ (as noted in filing) is that while this ‘wing’ of the entity operates independently, the revenue it generates still goes into the parent companys purse…
And the parent company (as the owner) can do whatever it wants with those funds (redirect to other projects, etc) even if it means neglecting some (or alot) of its commitments to its existing partners. FiteTV was never TRILLER’s main priority – the triller tiktok style app is/was.
So while theres revenue coming in and some folks continue to get paid, there are also many that aren’t and most arent being paid in full or are owed significant amounts… Heres what i gather (my educated insight as someone who reads these developments from a diff perspective):
The parent company (located in china) is indifferent to trillerTV and its $ issues. The trillertv (fite) entity is going to be sold, but they cant until the court gives the freedom to make a move without the parents companys consent (they appear to & claim to have been abandoned).
So while this is a pretty tough circumstance for many (aew, gcw and many smaller partners), i remain optimistic that eventually there will be a resolution (sale) and the company will continue on without the burden of an umbrella that is siphoning the revenue. Fingers crossed.
There have been so many really good people involved w FITE over the years, Mike Weber, Keith Evans, Kosta and all the people overseas. They truly pushed wrestling and combat sports streaming forward, hopefully this part of their legacy can continue in a positive manner.
Short simple answer:- GCW will continue to stream on trillerTV+ for the foreseeable future until or unless *we* decide not to.”