Backstage Update: The ROH Sale & Future

Source: Pwinsider.com

According to a source, the ROH deal with Sinclair Broadcasting almost happened 18-months ago. There were negotiations, but the two sides could not come to terms. There also had been at least two other suitors who had made offers to Cary Silkin over the last year. Here are some backstage bullet point notes on the sale:

* ROH held a meeting with their talent backstage at today's live event to announce the sale of the company. The meeting was held with all talent and management at 4:00EST and a presser (we posted it here) was issued shortly thereafter. ROH president Carey Silkin praised the sale and said good things would come from it.

* Sinclair will attempt to syndicate the series in additional markets both domestically and internationally.

* ROH had been holding off on announcing new dates for shows, due to the possible sale.

* There is no timetable for a return to traditional PPV.

* HDNet retains the rights to the content for high definition broadcasting but ROH will have access and rights to the material if it is used in standard definition

* Many ROH talents are signed to deals and the feeling is that the remaining talents who aren't signed will be offered deals or will be replaced by talents that will.

* There may be additional names, with WWE value, added to the roster. This would be similar to that of Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin. Obviously names from WWE are bigger draws and are needed in order to draw more fans and higher ratings.

* We noted earlier here on the website that former ROH star Jimmy Jacobs is returning at tonight's ROH Super Card of Honor event. Jacobs will likely be returning likely in the role of Steve Corino's sponsor. This has been in the works for a while, as Jacobs has been finishing up his EVOLVE and DGUSA commitments.