Ahead of launching its streaming service, Disney has banned ads from Netflix on all of its TV platforms and pulled out its content from the platform.
Disney is launching its streaming service Disney Plus (or as the company brands it, Disney+) on November 12 in a select few countries in direct competition to Netflix, Amazon Prime and the more recently launched Apple TV Plus among others.
Ahead of launching its streaming service, Disney has banned ads from Netflix on all of its TV platforms and pulled out its content from the platform.
J.P. Morgan has predicted that Disney Plus will eventually draw 160m subscribers from around the world, more than Netflix’s current 139m.
In early August, Needham analyst Laura Martin said: “We project Disney will win and Netflix will lose the US SVOD battle.”
Commenting on the development, a Disney spokesperson told CNBC: “The direct-to-consumer business has evolved, with many more entrants looking to advertise in traditional television, and across our portfolio of networks. While the initial decision was strictly advertising based, we reevaluated our strategy to reflect the comprehensive business relationships we have with many of these companies, as direct-to-consumer is one element.”
Netflix has declined to comment on the ban.
Disney is planning to spend millions of dollars in the coming months over advertising for Disney Plus to attract customers. Last year, rival Netflix spent $1.8bn on advertising.
Netflix is also presently available in over 190 countries and has recently released the trailer for its upcoming fantasy series The Witcher, starring Superman actor Henry Cavill. Netflix is pitching it as the next Game of Thrones, and has spent $16bn in 2019 on original content.
Apple TV and Disney, by comparison, have each invested $1bn for original content this year although Apple has earmarked $6 billion on its initial lineup of TV shows, documentary series, and other originals for Apple TV Plus.
Disney is planning to have a content bank for all age groups to lure in viewers and is wasting no time in developing new content. Disney Plus will host a several exclusive movies and TV series which includes new Pixar, Marvel Studios and Star Wars content. Last year, it acquired Twenty-First Century Fox Inc’s film and television assets for $71bn. The deal gives its upcoming streaming service even a wider range of popular content as it takes on Netflix.
Competing with Netflix, Disney is taking up the streaming service right from the cost.
Disney Plus will cost $6.99 a month, which is cheaper than Netflix which charges $8.99 per month.
In the meantime, Amazon and Disney are also fighting over terms that would allow Amazon to buy “a substantial percentage of the ad space” on Disney apps, reports said.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is not planning to offer Disney support for Disney Plus on the Amazon Fire TV platform.
While Netflix and Amazon have had a head start and with Apple TV Plus launched just days ago, Disney has a lot to catch up on.
But with the aggressive strategies being employed by the media company and a loyal fanbase, Disney is gearing up for an all-out war.
