Exclusive: Vince McMahon Threatens To Punish Talent Engaging With Third Parties

Vince McMahon issued an edict this past week that talent can no longer "engage with outside third parties," which would presumably include platforms like Cameo and Twitch.

WWE held a call with talent last Sunday regarding the reinvention of the product. During the call, it was said that WWE owns the real names of talent, not just their character names.

McMahon followed up by sending a letter on Thursday. McMahon wrote that it was imperative that they promote and protect the brand in every conceivable way, and that talent have 30 days to stop engaging with third parties.

"Some of you are engaged with outside third parties using your name and likeness in ways that are detrimental to our company," McMahon wrote. "It is imperative that these activities be terminated within the next 30 days (by Friday October 2). Continued violations will result in fines, suspension, or termination at WWE's discretion."

McMahon wrote that these actions are necessary as part of WWE's rebuilding process as they "enter the next phase of growth at WWE."

It will be interesting to see if this is legal in any way. WWE wrestlers are classified as independent contractors, which has been heavily criticized in the past by shows like HBO's Last Week Tonight.