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I think the reason people probably comes down to the style the guys work, it being less "staged" and less "cartoony" in general. That's not a criticism of the WWE or me blowing ROH, but they're two different subgenres of professional wrestling, in a way.
ROH would be better off keeping track of wins and losses, providing finishes out of nowhere, random upsets (like Edwards beating Strong for the ROH World Title, which I totally called) and all that sort of stuff. Not to mimic MMA, but to sort of get on that same wave-length.
If the WWE started doing that, then I think they would lose a lot of ground. The obvious comparisons between professional wrestling and MMA would be drawn (one is fake and the other is not), and it'd just be a huge failure like the XFL. Besides, the WWE has some of the best wrestlers in the world under contract. Guys that ROH would murder to get (back).
That being said, ROH is probably the best alternative to the WWE out there. If you feel dumb watching the WWE and it's obvious patterns and safe-marketed approach -- then ROH provides something more unchained for your viewing tastes. They just need to get themselves out there more, and perhaps get some of their guys some more air-time somewhere.
ROH can't present themselves like the WWE and be anywhere near as successful. I think ROH is more likely to find niche success with a different way of getting their product out there. DVDs are probably the best option. They come with replayability and you can crash more than a measly hour into there (an hour for ROH to present anything is cutting it fine). They don't need to tour in huge arenas, or anything like that, but they should work on their presentation and really make it seem like they are going for a small, intimate arena -- but it just shouldn't look like crap.
ROH has its problems, but I want them to succeed, and if they had the money that TNA had, I think they would be doing a better job.
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