As previously announced, WWE will be releasing “The Best of RAW & Smackdown 2014” on February 3rd to the United States (pre-order), February 4th to Australia (via WWEDVD.com.au), and lastly February 9th to UK/Europe (via WWEDVD.co.uk).
The title will be released on DVD format only, following the recent cancellation of the Blu-ray edition, and this unfortunately applies worldwide. We can reveal that the following 7 Blu-ray exclusives were planned for that version should it have gone ahead.
— Piper’s Pit with the Shield RAW • January 6, 2014
— Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Dolph Ziggler vs. Antonio Cesaro SmackDown • January 31, 2014
— The Shield vs. The Wyatt Family RAW • March 3, 2014
— The Ultimate Warrior Speaks to the WWE Universe RAW • April 7, 2014
— Chris Jericho Interrupts The Authority RAW • July 28, 2014
— Last Man Standing Match
Roman Reigns vs. Kane RAW • August 4, 2014
— Hulk Hogan Celebrates His Birthday RAW • August 11, 2014
The UK’s WWE Home Video distributor issued this apology for the Blu-ray cancellation:
Hi everybody. We just wanted to address some of the feedback we’ve had regarding the lack of Blu-ray for The Best of Raw & Smackdown 2014.
We’re always pushing to deliver the best possible products for our UK fans. While in the US last year only three of WWE’s PPVs were made available on Blu-ray, we released all 12 of them, meaning UK fans had a total of 13 Blu-ray exclusives! And we’ll be doing exactly the same in 2015, making sure we bring you as much HD content as possible.
However, when WWE decides not to release a Blu-ray in the US, it means there are significantly bigger costs for us here. Unfortunately, in the cases of both Best PPV Matches and The Best of Raw & Smackdown 2014 (which are both 2-Disc Sets, with twice the cost of a PPV), low demand in previous years has meant Blu-ray isn’t a viable option. Though Blu-ray is also our preferred format, DVD is still the most popular format in not just the UK, but around the world.
Please accept our apologies – as WWE fans we’re also hugely disappointed about this and always endeavour to produce the very best content.
Here’s a closer look at the planned cover artwork for TLC 2014!
Fans in the United States get the DVD next month. Pictured here are the UK versions (including an exclusive Blu-ray edition) which are to be released over at WWEDVD.co.uk in March.
Below, watch a “Timeline: The History of ECW – 1999” sneak peek trailer! Be sure to get your hands on the full length version via KayfabeCommentaries.com on January 8th.
Find out if you’re a winner of the WDN Christmas Giveaway (and how to enter our brand new giveaway for “True Giants” on DVD and Blu-ray) by clicking here.
This $9.99 eBay auction expires later today for a tricky-to-find Triple H: That Damn Good DVD. A copy of the Triple H: The Game DVD is also ending today in this auction.
A few other WWF DVD rarities are up for grabs today at decent prices too:
It seems that Blu-ray sales are slow for releases covering the current product. I avoid the current product like the plague on home video, and I’m glad to see I’m not alone. Keep the 80s/90s content coming and I will buy.
The news of the cut blu-ray exclusives doesn’t bother me too much since every Raw and SmackDown from 2014 is up on the Network, so I can see everything already. Now if the Network didn’t exist then I would be bummed.
“WWE Home Video will cease operations at the end of December 31, 2014 when Warner Home Video will take over distribution of WWE titles.[2] The new deal will also see future DVD releases of the former World Championship Wrestling which both were previously owned by its parent Time Warner (although WCW sold its assets to the WWF in 2001)”. Does that sound like additional wcw releases…. Or just wishful thinking???
It’s a Wikipedia quote so not gospel. WCW sets will probably continue as normal. Could be interesting to see if the “WWE Home Video” name goes away though.
I heard that with wb doing the wwe dvds now that they are going to release some wcw library to physical media? Anyone know what this means? Possible anthology sets???
According to this article, it does not cost that much more money to produce a bluray..
now, it might be not true, but then again.. it might be.. we will problaly never know..
fair enough, that we do not get the bluray..but, I still do not see, why WWE feels the need to let us know, what they wanted to put on as bluray extras..they could easily put these 7 segments on the DVD instead.. a DVD disc can have up to 3 hours 50 minutes, plus/minus 5 minutes.
If the WWE wrestling fans are not having a critical point of view to the product they love, and just nods and accepts the bs apologies for the very questionable descisions that wwe has made as of lately, then I can understand more and more how and why the content and quality has taken the sad turns lately.
We’re still an unofficial source here at WDN you know? WWE isn’t telling you what they planned to release, Fremantle isn’t. It’s purely for interest/discussion on this site. It’s perhaps somewhat of an education too as we now know what was left off the DVD content because it was planned for the Blu-ray.
On that same subject, you could say that if Blu-ray versions get cancelled they should really rework the content if there’s still time.
They cannot make a blu ray for The Best Of RAW & SmackDown 2014 for UK fans because it costs too much money to produce a blu ray so stop your complaining, at least you have the 3 dvd set of The Best Of RAW & SmackDown 2014
I know wrestling is mainly aimed at kids but the way some people go on on this site makes me laugh.
How more clear can Freemantle be? They are a business. There was no appetite for a Blu Ray based on previous years sales. So they produce the DVD only. Clear. Simple. Complete sense. What exactly do people not understand?
pointless to mention, what original was planning to be put on as exclusives, when it will not be set in motion. Better then just keep it to them selfs, WWE and Freemantle.
And what excactly is the so called apology…or am I missing something in the article???
well.. what excactly are we going to do with those info’s on missing oppurtunities from wwe other than, feeling our selfs screwed over, yet again.. I mean, if I did not get the knowledge bout wwe actually planning to have the Warrior segment on this release, then I would not feel that screwed over.
Again, more and more we will see this way of treatment of wwe’s fans from wwe, that if you as a fan want the whole package, you will have to buy “downloadble content” likewise what pc and console game users have been treated to: keep paying for the same product with few extra content streaming from the Network.
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Aww they better put the Shield/Wyatt match on a different collection then!
So TLC gets a (UK only) Bluray, but Survivor Series and Best of RAW and Smackdown 2014 is DVD only? How sad.
It seems that Blu-ray sales are slow for releases covering the current product. I avoid the current product like the plague on home video, and I’m glad to see I’m not alone. Keep the 80s/90s content coming and I will buy.
Sure hope this doesnt mean a decline in Blu Ray releases overall in the UK. Quite like having every PPV in Blu…. 🙁
The news of the cut blu-ray exclusives doesn’t bother me too much since every Raw and SmackDown from 2014 is up on the Network, so I can see everything already. Now if the Network didn’t exist then I would be bummed.
“WWE Home Video will cease operations at the end of December 31, 2014 when Warner Home Video will take over distribution of WWE titles.[2] The new deal will also see future DVD releases of the former World Championship Wrestling which both were previously owned by its parent Time Warner (although WCW sold its assets to the WWF in 2001)”. Does that sound like additional wcw releases…. Or just wishful thinking???
It’s a Wikipedia quote so not gospel. WCW sets will probably continue as normal. Could be interesting to see if the “WWE Home Video” name goes away though.
I heard that with wb doing the wwe dvds now that they are going to release some wcw library to physical media? Anyone know what this means? Possible anthology sets???
I doubt that. All WB is acquired is the license to distribute and publish WWE DVDs. WWE still call the shots on what gets released.
http://www.blu-ray.com/faq/#bluray_pricing
According to this article, it does not cost that much more money to produce a bluray..
now, it might be not true, but then again.. it might be.. we will problaly never know..
fair enough, that we do not get the bluray..but, I still do not see, why WWE feels the need to let us know, what they wanted to put on as bluray extras..they could easily put these 7 segments on the DVD instead.. a DVD disc can have up to 3 hours 50 minutes, plus/minus 5 minutes.
If the WWE wrestling fans are not having a critical point of view to the product they love, and just nods and accepts the bs apologies for the very questionable descisions that wwe has made as of lately, then I can understand more and more how and why the content and quality has taken the sad turns lately.
We’re still an unofficial source here at WDN you know? WWE isn’t telling you what they planned to release, Fremantle isn’t. It’s purely for interest/discussion on this site. It’s perhaps somewhat of an education too as we now know what was left off the DVD content because it was planned for the Blu-ray.
On that same subject, you could say that if Blu-ray versions get cancelled they should really rework the content if there’s still time.
“We can reveal that the following 7 Blu-ray exclusives were planned for that version should it have gone ahead.”
I’m sorry if I do not understand then, but that sentence in your article, is not saying, what WWE planned to release as Bluray exclusives???
I’d be happy to hear of a delay on the release of this to squeeze those seven extras on the dvd. They’re too good to be left off.
Another downer in all this is the fact that this set, unlike the Best of PPV, probably won’t be 9 hours, more like 7 or so. A real shame, all of this.
They cannot make a blu ray for The Best Of RAW & SmackDown 2014 for UK fans because it costs too much money to produce a blu ray so stop your complaining, at least you have the 3 dvd set of The Best Of RAW & SmackDown 2014
I know wrestling is mainly aimed at kids but the way some people go on on this site makes me laugh.
How more clear can Freemantle be? They are a business. There was no appetite for a Blu Ray based on previous years sales. So they produce the DVD only. Clear. Simple. Complete sense. What exactly do people not understand?
There’s no appetite for Blu-ray of the current product. Releases of 80s/90s content (when wrestling was worth watching) appear to be doing just fine.
pointless to mention, what original was planning to be put on as exclusives, when it will not be set in motion. Better then just keep it to them selfs, WWE and Freemantle.
And what excactly is the so called apology…or am I missing something in the article???
Still interesting to know plans but it’s not necessarily going to feel good, yeah.
The apology is within an embedded Facebook status, but it doesn’t appear to be showing on all browsers and maybe mobile. I’ll try to sort it.
Daniel, the Fixer of Everything’s.. 🙂
well.. what excactly are we going to do with those info’s on missing oppurtunities from wwe other than, feeling our selfs screwed over, yet again.. I mean, if I did not get the knowledge bout wwe actually planning to have the Warrior segment on this release, then I would not feel that screwed over.
Again, more and more we will see this way of treatment of wwe’s fans from wwe, that if you as a fan want the whole package, you will have to buy “downloadble content” likewise what pc and console game users have been treated to: keep paying for the same product with few extra content streaming from the Network.
Imho, a very sad evolution.
can read the apology text from Fremantle now, on both Chrome and IE 11. Daniel the Fixer’Upper strikes again.. 😉
Hopefully Shield vs. Wyatts sneak into the Shield Blu-ray instead.
Those were some great exclusives – especially Wyatts vs. Shield, Kane vs. Reigns and of course the Warrior promo.