5/15 ROH Press Conference coverage: COO Joe Koff discusses the iPPV technical issues, hopes to add to the pay-per-view schedule once problems are resolved, comments on HD possibilities, television specials, and more

The following are the highlights of the Ring of Honor press conference involving COO Joe Koff that was held on May 15 via conference call.

-Koff introduced himself and welcomed callers. He said he just wanted to talk about the Border Wars iPPV. He said they had the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. He said they had an unprecedented number of people who were attempting to sign in for the pay-per-view. He noted that they did testing in advance.

-Koff said the issues were not related to streaming. He said they couldn't handle the load of people attempting to sign in and the strain it put on their server. He said he was proud of their response team who put the word out to customers via the Facebook page that refunds were available. "There's no blame to be passed," Koff said. "We should have anticipated, we should have been better prepared, we weren't." He said they have people within the company who were looking into the issues. Koff apologized for the issues.

-Koff was asked to explain what technical issue was. He said it was a server related issue.

-Koff was told that it actually took 55 minutes for the company to acknowledge the problems on Facebook. He acknowledged that was the case.

-Koff was asked whether the company is considering the possibility of moving to a traditional pay-per-view television platform. He doesn't feel they are at the point where that would be a profitable venture. He noted that they would like to build up to that point someday.

-Koff said he believes they are beating TNA in the markets the ROH show airs in. He said they are doing close to 2.0 ratings and it's not always in ideal time slots. "This program is performing very, very well," he said.

-Koff noted that year two is when they intend to increase their syndicated television efforts.

-Koff was asked about "shoddy camera work" on the televised events. He said they have to get the lighting right and then they can get into the cosmetics. He mentioned the possibility of bringing in some consultants in the future.

-Koff was asked about much the company invested to make production enhancements. He said he would not respond to Gabe Sapolsky's Facebook page comments.

-Koff said they were just shy or a little bit over the 2,000 mark for Border Wars pre-sales. He said he feels a lot has to do with the matches on the show, and noted that it may have also been a case of fans being pleased with the shows being moved to the ROH website rather than going to another carrier.

-Koff was asked whether they can make more money by eliminating an online pay-per-view carrier. He joked that he doesn't know because they haven't had a clean stream. He said he likes to have control of it in-house and they also have the potential to run more shows than they have in the past and not have to work around a carrier's schedule. He declined to say how many pay-per-view events they intend to run, but he said he hopes to add more this year.

-Regarding a switch to HD, he said it is at the top of their budgetary meeting list. He believes it will happen in 2013, but noted that HD may not be an option on all affiliates. He noted that a Netflix-like option would be considered, but he didn't make it seem like its anything that's currently on the horizon. He also noted that a business lunch he's having tomorrow could potentially lead to an expansion of the ROH syndicated television universe, but he stressed that it was not something imminent.

-Koff was asked what changes he'd like to see the company make with the second fiscal year approaching. He said he would like to get the production to an HD level, deliver on all promises, expand into other markets, and grow the current markets. He noted that some of the wrestlers have told him they are now being recognized in public more than they were in the past.

-Koff acknowledged that they do have the potential to run a Clash of Champions-like special and it's something he would like to do down the road. He said there are issues with potential affiliates that may have other contractual issues.

-Koff noted that he was not aware of some of the production quality issues with some of their recent DVD releases, specifically for the shows taped in the Carolinas. He said that the issue is now noted.

-Koff was asked about the length of ROH pay-per-view events. He said he is inclined to say that less is more, but he rarely sees fans leave their shows early. He said they want to give their performers a chance to perform at their highest level and he feels that four hours is more than enough time do so. The call concluded shortly thereafter.