Skip to Content
Newsletter Facebook Twitter YouTube
Disney+

Disney Will Promote Starz on Disney Plus & ESPN Plus to Regain Streaming Rights to Some Titles

Stephanie Sengwe
Stephanie Sengwe is writer based in New York who covers companies in the streaming industry including AT&T, Amazon, Apple, Hulu, Roku, and Netflix . She also contributes daily news coverage on streaming services and devices for The Streamable.
Read full bio ›
Stephanie Sengwe

In order to make sure you could stream all Star Wars titles when Disney+ launches next week, Disney had to make a deal with Starz. According to The Verge, in order to regain streaming rights to some titles from Starz, Disney has to run an ad for Starz when a user finishes signing-up on Disney+ and ESPN+.

Once you’re logged in however, the platform is entirely ad-free. The ads are simply a part of a revised licensing deal between Disney and Starz to make sure certain titles are available on Disney+ at launch.

Disney has signed a number of huge licensing deals to Netflix and Starz over the years, and with Disney+ launching Nov. 12, they want to ensure subscribers can stream movies from Marvel, Lucasfilm and Pixar. However, the company needed to regain those streaming rights before they can become available on the streaming service. Many of their hits were “encumbered by licensing arrangements that we have with a number of different entities, notably Netflix and Starz,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in an investors call in August 2018.

In the case of Starz, which has licenses to Star Wars: The Force Awakens and other Marvel films, Disney has brokered a deal with the network in order to get their streaming rights back. By running an ad after signing up for Disney+ and ESPN+, Disney was able to regain the right to the Star Wars titles. In a statement to The Verge, “Disney has clarified that customers should only see the ad one time, after they finish signing up for Disney+ or ESPN+.”

Disney is also not the only media company in this conundrum. WarnerMedia and NBCUniversal have had to dole out hundreds of millions in order to get streaming rights to their own shows such as Friends, The Office and Parks and Recreation.

Stephanie Sengwe
Stephanie Sengwe is writer based in New York who covers companies in the streaming industry including AT&T, Amazon, Apple, Hulu, Roku, and Netflix . She also contributes daily news coverage on streaming services and devices for The Streamable.
Read full bio ›
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit

DIRECTV STREAM Cash Back

Let us know your e-mail address to send your $50 Amazon Gift Card when you sign up for DIRECTV STREAM.

You will receive it ~2 weeks after you complete your first month of service.

Offer Terms

  • Only valid for new DIRECTV STREAM subscribers.
  • Only valid once per household.
  • You must pay and maintain service for at least one month to be eligible.
  • Purchase must be completed on the DIRECTV STREAM website.
  • You’ll receive gift card 4-6 weeks after purchase (~2 weeks after your first month).
  • Cannot be combined with any other promotion and won’t be eligible if you try to use a coupon code or cash back from another site.

Sling TV Cash Back

Let us know your e-mail address to send your $25 Uber Eats Gift Card when you sign up for Sling TV.

You will receive it ~2 weeks after you complete your first month of service.

Offer Terms

  • Only valid for new Sling TV subscribers to Sling Orange, Blue, or Sling Orange + Blue.
  • Only valid once per household.
  • You must pay and maintain service for at least one month to be eligible.
  • You must click from The Streamable and complete your purchase on the Sling TV website.
  • You’ll receive gift card 4-6 weeks after purchase (~2 weeks after your first month).
  • Cannot be combined with any other promotion and won’t be eligible if you try to use a coupon code or cash back from another site.

Hulu Live TV Cash Back

Let us know your e-mail address to send your $35 Amazon Gift Card when you sign up for Hulu Live TV.

You will receive it ~2 weeks after you complete your first month of service.

Offer Terms

  • Only valid for new Hulu Live TV subscribers.
  • Only valid once per household.
  • You must pay and maintain service for at least one month to be eligible.
  • You must click from The Streamable and complete your purchase on the Hulu Live TV website.
  • You’ll receive gift card 4-6 weeks after purchase (~2 weeks after your first month).
  • Cannot be combined with any other promotion and won’t be eligible if you try to use a coupon code or cash back from another site.