Disney to bundle D2C services

The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) is planning to bundle its forthcoming direct-to-consumer (D2C) service Disney+ with Hulu and ESPN+ and is in discussions about the international roll-out of Disney+.

Bob Iger

TWDC CEO Bob Iger told investors that the bundle, which will include the ad-supported version of Hulu, would cost US$12.99 per month and would be available when Disney+ launches in the US on November 12.

Speaking during Disney’s quarterly earnings call with Wall Street analysts, Iger also said the firm was in talks with tech giants Apple, Amazon and Google to distribute its D2C services on their platforms.

“We think it’s important to achieve scale relatively quickly and they’ll be an important part of that,” he said.

Disney+ is set to launch with around 300 movies and 7,500 TV episodes drawn from the company’s library of programming plus its forthcoming originals, such as Star Wars live-action series The Mandalorian.

“Disney+ will ultimately become the exclusive streaming service for our vast library of movies and series: National Geographic content, all upcoming Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars movies and a robust slate of high-quality original programming from the creative engines that drive our entire company,” Iger said.

The Disney boss added that the company would be tapping into the 21st Century Fox library of titles for its D2C offer to “re-imagine” movies such as Home Alone, Night at the Museum, Cheaper by the Dozen and Diary of a Wimpy Kid on Disney+.

Iger also shed some light on the international roll-out of Disney+, with the first launches outside of the US possibly coming soon after its debut and “multiple international markets” due to receive Disney+ within the next two to three years.

“We will launch in international markets very quickly. Two are going to launch around the same time [of the US launch]. Over the next two to three years, we’re going to roll out in a number of other markets. They are different to the US, but they do share an interest in Marvel, Pixar, Disney, National Geographic and Star Wars, which is very important.

“The product that’s being made for the platforms travels globally and that’s a big deal. We will have to augment it in certain markets with local programming to meet quotas that are now being applied to OTT services. We’re also going to enter into discussions on an international basis, market by market, with local distributors. We’re already in those discussions actually.”

Elsewhere during the call, Iger said the company was looking to balance its shift to D2C with maintaining its traditional linear TV operation, with brands such as Disney Channel, ABC, FX and Freeform.

“We have our own balancing act to do in terms of fuelling both sides – the traditional side and the D2C – with enough quality product to succeed in both places,” he said.

“Obviously, we’re also setting ourselves up in a way to be probably more resilient than any of our competitors should the traditional side erode so significantly that it’s not as viable as it has been as a business. That would enable us to pivot pretty quickly to by moving even more product from the traditional channels to the non-traditional channels.”