Disney today revealed more about its upcoming streaming service, Disney+. Specifically, we now know which devices the service will be on, and to which countries it’ll be rolling out at launch.
Disney revealed the new streaming service would be rolling out to Canada and the Netherlands on November 12, the same day it launches in the US. It also rolls out in Australia and New Zealand on November 19. Disney’s CEO Bob Iger said in an earning’s call earlier this month the service would launch in two international markets, so presumably this is where he meant. No word yet on when it’ll be coming to other countries, such as the rest of Europe or Asia, but Iger said in the same call he expects the service to expand to additional markets over the next two or three years.
Someone asked us to formally introduce ourselves so of course we made a video. pic.twitter.com/VZLrJ6ff7k
— Disney+ (@disneyplus) August 19, 2019
As for what the world will be playing the movies on, Disney’s told us more about that, too. To sum up, Disney+ will be available on:
- iOS devices and Apple TV
- Android phones and TVs, Google Chromecast and Chromecast built-in devices
- Roku sticks and TVs
- PS4 and Sony TVs
- Xbox One
It also confirmed you’ll be able to subscribe to Disney+ either directly or via in-app purchases.
While that’s an extensive list, it doesn’t include all the major players. Notably, the company appears to be snubbing Amazon’s devices, such as the Fire TV. It’s always possible those will come later — Disney specifies that the companies with which it launches were chosen thanks to “global distribution agreements in place.” It’s possible they couldn’t get an agreement with Amazon settled in time for the launch, which is now just a few months away.
Disney’s going all-in on the service, as it would need to in order to compete with the likes of Netflix or Amazon’s Prime Video. The slate of new content it’s planned for Disney+ includes at least four shows in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a High School Musical series, and a Monsters Inc project. The show that’ll be available at launch, as a carrot to lure in the curious, is The Mandalorian, set in the Star Wars universe.
We already know the company is bundling Disney+ with ESPN Plus and Hulu — presumably to expand the appeal to adults who might not necessarily be interested in the Disney catalog. The pricing ($12.99) is pretty competitive, with the bundle being the same price as Netflix and Hulu. Disney+ by itself will cost $6.99 a month.
Meanwhile, on Twitter, Disney today “announced” it’s moving its shows, which started a jocular chain of tweets from all the brands Disney owns about “packing up.” It ended with this hilarious, if rather hypocritical tweet:
Worst. Corporate Twitter stunt. Ever. pic.twitter.com/EK4KfVGTKX
— The Simpsons (@TheSimpsons) August 19, 2019
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