Disney Confirms Upcoming Streaming Service Will Include Marvel and Star Wars Films

[MacRumors]

In early August, Disney revealed that it plans to pull all of its movies from Netflix and launch its own streaming service in 2019. Users were understandably curious as to which Disney-owned brands that might include, particularly once Disney CEO Bob Iger referenced the company's interest in potentially branching off Marvel and Star Wars into their own, separate streaming services.

Today, Iger cleared up any confusion by confirming Marvel and Star Wars films will be available on the upcoming Disney-branded streaming app (via Deadline). Current films in these franchises on Netflix -- like Doctor Strange and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story -- will be removed from Netflix and arrive on the Disney platform when it launches in 2019. It's still unclear at what point between now and 2019 Disney will begin removing these films from Netflix.

Last month Reuters reported that Netflix was in "active discussions" with Disney to keep Marvel and Star Wars films on the popular streaming platform, but it appears those talks have now fallen through.

Films from Marvel and Star Wars that now go to Netflix will move to Disney's planned ad-free direct-to-consumer streaming service, CEO Bob Iger said today at an investor gathering.

"We're going to launch big, and we're going to launch hot" by late 2019, he told the Bank of America Merrill Lynch 2017 Media, Communications & Entertainment Conference.

The outcome for Marvel and Star Wars TV shows was not specified, but Iger said that the Disney streaming app "will have the entire output of the studio -- animation, live action and Disney including Pixar, Star Wars and all of the Marvel films," potentially including television content. Right now, users can watch Marvel and Star Wars TV shows on Netflix including Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Last month Iger confirmed that Disney "has no plans" to remove any of the Netflix-owned and created Marvel series from the service, including Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, and The Punisher. These original Netflix shows were formed under a separate deal from the one created in 2012, meaning they'll continue to be Netflix original shows for the forseeable future. Iger said Disney is even potentially willing to license even more Marvel characters for future shows.

On the Disney branded side of things, the app will include four or five "mostly live action" original movies, as well as four or five original Disney TV shows. Besides the new content, the service will of course also house the company's back catalogue, spanning nearly 500 films, 7,000 episodes of television, and "thousands" of short films. Neither Disney nor Iger has mentioned the subscription cost for the service yet, but the CEO said a price will be coming "in the months ahead."

Article Link: Disney Confirms Upcoming Streaming Service Will Include Marvel and Star Wars Films

 

[UndefinedxJoker]

Post-cable era looks to be very fragmented and expensive.

 

[mox358]

I think this will do well with people who need to entertain kids (parents, grandparents) but if you're a Marvel / Star Wars fan do they realize produce enough content to subscribe every month?

I'm guessing most people in the latter camp will probably either buy films one off, which will be cheaper, or just "acquire" them by other means.

 

[ck2875]

As long as I can still purchase their movies from iTunes for a one-time $20 fee, I generally don't care what service Disney tries to peddle by themselves. I know a lot of people expect anything and everything to be on Netflix though, so this news kind of sucks for that demographic.

Also, I'll be a bit disappointed if they don't call the service "Disney Vault"

 

[GFLPraxis]

This fragmentation will be what kills streaming, unfortunately.

Disney is pulling it's shows from Netflix to make their own service. Amazon is buying their own original programming to get people to subscribe to Prime. ESPN is launching their own streaming service. Hulu is buying their own original programming. Netflix is buying their own exclusives and original programming. There's rumors of Apple buying exclusive programming.

By the time these services are mature, the market will be massively segmented; people will need to buy separate subscriptions to Netflix, Prime, Hulu, ESPN, and Disney, among likely others (Apple?), many of these having huge overlap, just to get access to a couple shows.


And when people say: "X and Y have a 99% overlap in shows I want to watch- except this one exclusive show"...they won't want to sign up for a whole new service just to watch one show.


So what will they do? For many people, pirate.

Netflix has massively reduced film piracy rates just like Steam has reduced game piracy rates. Why? Because, as Gabe Newell put it, piracy is partially a service problem. Piracy rates increase when piracy becomes more convenient than the traditional product. Harsh DRM or poor distribution frequently drives up piracy rates.


Unless these new services are very cheap...when the digital market fragments and people don't want to spend enormous amounts of money to subscribe to redundant services just to get access to a show...I'm going to predict high piracy rates of those shows.

 

[cmwade77]

Post-cable era looks to be very fragmented and expensive.

Yes and that is a problem that needs to be addressed. I still maintain there needs to be a universal central system (think Amazon channels kind of) where all channels/services are priced at say $3 per channel or bundle them and save:
$5 for 3 channels
$10 for 10 channels
$20 for 25 channels

The exact price points may vary, but something to that general effect, these stations make enough off of advertising and then having to pay high dollar amounts for the channels beyond that it pathetic.

I'm guessing most people in the latter camp will probably either buy films one off, which will be cheaper, or just "acquire" them by other means.

And this is why it needs to be addressed, if it is too expensive to obtain legitimately, people will either ignore it or pirate it and that has a whole series of problems.

 

[LordQ]

Streaming Fragmentation = Piracy.

 

[Zxxv]

Good luck with getting me to buy another monthly streaming service and have another app on my phone. *cough* NO CHANCE *cough*

 

[DNichter]

Yea I don't like the way the future is looking in regards to streaming. Hopefully it doesn't become so fragmented. If only there was a company with billions in the bank that could create one platform to serve all of the content and appropriately compensate the content makers.

 

[Cronowerx]

If this is how Disney wants to play then I'll just steal everything of torrents! I'm not paying for 2 streaming services!

 

[Peter K.]

This fragmentation will be what kills streaming, unfortunately.

Disney is pulling it's shows from Netflix to make their own service. Amazon is buying their own original programming to get people to subscribe to Prime. ESPN is launching their own streaming service. Hulu is buying their own original programming. Netflix is buying their own exclusives and original programming. There's rumors of Apple buying exclusive programming.

By the time these services are mature, the market will be massively segmented; people will need to buy separate subscriptions to Netflix, Prime, Hulu, ESPN, and Disney, among likely others (Apple?), many of these having huge overlap, just to get access to a couple shows.


And when people say: "X and Y have a 99% overlap in shows I want to watch- except this one exclusive show"...they won't want to sign up for a whole new service just to watch one show.


So what will they do? For many people, pirate.

Netflix has massively reduced film piracy rates just like Steam has reduced game piracy rates. Why? Because, as Gabe Newell put it, piracy is partially a service problem. Piracy rates increase when piracy becomes more convenient than the traditional product. Harsh DRM or poor distribution frequently drives up piracy rates.


Unless these new services are very cheap...when the digital market fragments and people don't want to spend enormous amounts of money to subscribe to redundant services just to get access to a show...I'm going to predict high piracy rates of those shows.

Exactly correct!

It is entirely likely that I won't even consider multiple (2 or more) streaming services. I will assess all of the offerings, choose one and live with it. As you mentioned, piracy will fill any critical gaps and I'll do without the rest.
[doublepost=1504804280][/doublepost]

If this is how Disney wants to play then I'll just steal everything of torrents! I'm not paying for 2 streaming services!

HA! Great minds think alike.

EDIT: Same to the other 2-3 above

 

[dan110]

I would rather just buy the good movies instead of paying for a service.

 

[Peter K.]

I would rather just buy the good movies instead of paying for a service.

Also a good option, especially if it is one I really like. I'll own it in and will pay for the highest quality (4K HDR...).

 

[Aldaris]

As long as I can still purchase their movies from iTunes for a one-time $20 fee, I generally don't care what service Disney tries to peddle by themselves. I know a lot of people expect anything and everything to be on Netflix though, so this news kind of sucks for that demographic.

Also, I'll be a bit disappointed if they don't call the service "Disney Vault"

The only interest I’ll have is if the entire library is available-if they pull items out to put back in the Disney vault like they have done for decades, it’s a hard pass. I’ll just build up my own library as I am able to.

*I was lucky enough to acquire a Peter Pan Blu-Ray and have my Disney and iTunes account linked and able to get the digital iCloud version too... I missed the iTunes HD version release a few years ago. It’s either all in for the streaming Disney streaming app or a complete no go.

 

[Boatboy24]

Post-cable era looks to be very fragmented and expensive.

Yep. I simply will not subscribe to multiple services just to get content that I already pay for with a single service today. By the time I add it all up, its worse than cable/fios. At some point, I'll cut the cord and decide to simply do with less.

 

[Peter K.]

Yep. I simply will not subscribe to multiple services just to get content that I already pay for with a single service today. By the time I add it all up, its worse than cable/fios. At some point, I'll cut the cord and decide to simply do with less.

Cancelling streaming service(s) is going to be the new "cut the cord".

 

[Nozuka]

amazing! i have been waiting for another streaming service!

...said noone ever

 

[TheAnimal]

Bob Iger is on the Apple board of directors. Wonder if there are any synergies to explore.

 

[Kaibelf]

Yea I don't like the way the future is looking in regards to streaming. Hopefully it doesn't become so fragmented. If only there was a company with billions in the bank that could create one platform to serve all of the content and appropriately compensate the content makers.

If only every time they barely moved in that direction people didn’t freak out about how if their former CEO was alive there wouldn’t be such a move and we’d have a new tiny form factor PC. Alas.

 

[mfvisuals]

Hulu, $7.99 - $11.99/month
Netflix, $7.99 - $11.99/month
Amazon Video, $8.99/month or $99/year
HBO Now, $14.99/month
ShowTime, $10.99/month or $109.90/year
DirecTV Now, $35 - $70/month
Sling TV, $20 - $40/month
Sony Playstation Vue, $39.99 - $74.99/month
YouTube TV, $35/month

So many options, with so much overlap.

There is even a few others I didn't price out here like Starz and CBS All Access.

You'd have to subscribe to at least 4-5 of these to access most exclusive programming and get a wide enough breadth of content to match comparable cable TV subscriptions.

Depending on what you choose, it may not cost any less than a cable TV subscription, which, I would imagine, is the main reason most people switch to streaming options and away from cable TV services.

And of course you'd need to be paying for an internet service connection on top of all of that.

It is definitely a mess. And now Disney is trying to add yet another subscription service to the lineup...

 

[GFLPraxis]

The only interest I’ll have is if the entire library is available-if they pull items out to put back in the Disney vault like they have done for decades, it’s a hard pass. I’ll just build up my own library as I am able to.

*I was lucky enough to acquire a Peter Pan Blu-Ray and have my Disney and iTunes account linked and able to get the digital iCloud version too... I missed the iTunes HD version release a few years ago. It’s either all in for the streaming Disney streaming app or a complete no go.

Right, the service better have everything Disney. Old films, TV shows, etc. If there isn't a tremendous amount of content, hard pass.

 

[tonyr6]

Netflix is worth nothing now. So they will keep the MA rated filth that NF produce from Marvel, pass. Since I will be getting Netflix included at no additional cost from T-Mobile soon I can keep the service but not use it much like when T-Mobile gives me MLB but I never use it much since they black out the good games. But if it was not for T-Mobile I would have dropped Netflix or what I now call Notflix by next year.

 

[hvfsl]

Netflix is worth nothing now. So they will keep the MA rated filth that NF produce from Marvel, pass. Since I will be getting Netflix included at no additional cost from T-Mobile soon I can keep the service but not use it much like when T-Mobile gives me MLB but I never use it much since they black out the good games. But if it was not for T-Mobile I would have dropped Netflix or what I now call Notflix by next year.

Well I completely disagree, I personally love all the NF Marvel shows (although some are better than others). They have taken the Batman Begins approach and tried to tone down some of the sillier comic book aspects of the shows, which does lead to a darker tone, but then I much prefer it to the DC shows like The Flash.

Although I have never watched any of the other Marvel or Star Wars stuff on NF, as I generally buy them on BlueRay, so this won't really affect me. But I don't really see how this is different to what we have now, where you can choose what TV channels you subscribe to, depending on what shows you want to watch. But instead of going to your TV provider to buy the channels, you will just buy something like an AppleTV and pay for the streaming services directly.

 

[macduke]

How much would it cost to just buy every Disney-owned movie every year? Looking at their roadmap there are only 6 releases this year, most of which I don't care about. Even looking to next year there are 10, but maybe 5 or 6 I'd care to watch. At $20/video (if you don't do codes) you might save some money buying vs. paying this service. Where they really get you is with the back catalog. But I only really care about the cartoons from the 90s onwards and I already own about every Pixar movie. Maybe once they flush out their TV content a bit more and ramp up more Star Wars content it would be worth it—probably even more if you have kids and they like to watch all their cruddy sequels like Lion King 1-1/2.

 

[EdT]

Yea I don't like the way the future is looking in regards to streaming. Hopefully it doesn't become so fragmented. If only there was a company with billions in the bank that could create one platform to serve all of the content and appropriately compensate the content makers.

What a coincidence! Apple has billions and billions (sorry Mr. Sagan) of reserves, AND they want to get into the business! There have been numerous articles about their attempts right here in Macrumors, as luck would have it. A significant number of the posts in these threads mention how Apple should stick to making hardware, if I recall.