WWE SmackDown, also known as Friday Night SmackDown! or simply SmackDown, is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It first appeared on TV in 1999 and was so popular that rival wrestling company WCW had to move their weekly show "Thunder" to another night, as it couldn't compete with SmackDown's staggering ratings. Since then, SmackDown has been a huge mainstream success with audiences all over the world.