Disney+ outlines plan to triple volume of int’l originals over next three years
David Tennant in Disney+ drama hit Rivals
Disney has outlined plans to “roughly triple” the volume of international originals carried on Disney+ over the next three years, following the success of local titles like UK period dramedy Rivals, Spanish-language drama Dear Killer Nannies and Korean romcom The Perfect Crown.
Disney said “early success” with its international programming slate had given it the “confidence to further ramp investment.”
In their respective markets, Dear Killer Nannies, The Perfect Crown and Rivals (season two) all became the most-viewed premieres ever on Disney+ when they launched earlier this year. Disney+ has also started commissioning originals in new markets, including the recent greenlight of its first local Canadian shows.
While Disney+ did not provide information on exactly how many international shows it plans to commission, the commitment to growing its roster of non-US titles will be welcome news for producers across the globe, particularly those where the streamer has a larger user base.
During the company’s third-quarter earnings call, CEO Josh D’Amaro said Disney wanted to “bring local content onto Disney+ at scale,” adding that, outside of the US, “subscribers that watch our international originals churn far less than those that don’t.”
Overall, the media giant is set to spend around US$24bn on content this year across originals, licensed content and sports, up slightly from the prior year.
On Wednesday, Disney revealed several other plans and initiatives designed to reshape Disney+ into a more far-reaching entertainment offering, including expanding its efforts in vertical video and gaming, and exploring moves into FAST and becoming an aggregator for third-party services.
On the vertical video front, Disney+ is looking to grow its vertical video tool, Verts, through a newly struck content-sharing pact with social media giant TikTok.
Under the deal, “Disney-centric fan-created content” from TikTok will be available on Disney+’s vertical video feed, as well as continuing to live on the social media platform. Disney said the content will come from participating creators who opt in to the programme.
D’Amaro said the addition of some TikTok content will create a “more complete experience” on Disney+ and mean users spend more time engaging with the streamer.
Disney is also exploring launching FAST channels, with D’Amaro pointing to an opportunity to target a “customer segment that’s more price sensitive,” in addition to growing advertising revenues and acquiring more paid subscribers.
His comments come three weeks after Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said the streamer was open to launching FAST channels in select markets but emphasised the need to be “thoughtful about cannibalisation of pay tiers.”
In addition, Disney is looking to remake itself as an aggregator of third-party services, following in the footsteps of Netflix, which this year started its TF1 carriage deal in France, and Amazon’s Prime Video Channels. D’Amaro said he believes Disney+ is on a “very short list” of platforms that are “well positioned for aggregation” on a global basis.
These forward-looking moves come after Disney on Tuesday confirmed it was selling off its 50% stake in A+E Global Media, parent of cablenets and brands such as A&E, History, Lifetime, LMN, FYI and Vice TV, to Hearst for around US$1.2bn. The company has also made two major rounds of layoffs so far this year, including one last month that hit Nat Geo, Pixar, ABC News and ESPN.
The various announcements are part of a strategy to position Disney+ as one massive subscription-based entertainment ecosystem as it expands beyond simply showing series and films.
“All this is designed to deepen engagement, improve the value proposition, lower churn, and most importantly increase lifetime fan value,” said D’Amaro, who also teased that Disney+ will “introduce elements of this expanded ecosystem beginning in spring 2027.”
In Q3, Disney’s entertainment revenue grew 6% to US$11.36bn, helped by the strong box office and consumer products performance of Toy Story 5, while operating income jumped 64% to US$1.68bn.
Across the entire media company, including its sports and experiences divisions, Disney revenue grew 7% to US$25.24bn, with operating income up 21% to US$5.55bn.
