As part of their fourth quarter earnings announcement today, Disney released details of their new Netflix competitor.
While some expected the service to be called DisneyPlay, the company announced that the service will be called Disney+. This mirrors the naming convention of their sports streaming service ESPN+.
The service is expected to launch in late 2019 and will result in bringing much of the Star Wars, Pixar, and Marvel content that is currently on Netflix.
What Films will be on Disney+?
Starting in March, the company will let their licensing deal with Netflix expire. This means all Disney films starting with Captain Marvel will go on the Disney streaming service. This includes the live-action remake of Dumbo and the next Avengers film.
They will also be making films exclusively available for the service like live action remakes of Lady and the Tramp and The Sword in the Stone, the Anna Kendrick Christmas comedy Noelle, and Timmy Failure, based on the best-selling books.
What Television Shows will be on Disney+?
Disney will make television series based on their films Monsters Inc. and High School Musical.
There are discussions to bring a return of the Muppets, as well as an original Thor spin-off called Loki starring Tom Hiddleston.
Their most ambitious project though is a $100 million, 10 episodes live-action Star Wars TV series from Iron Man director John Favreau. They will also release will be a prequel to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story starring Diego Luna.
Disney confirmed that Marvel’s current original shows on Netflix will stay with the streaming service.
It is expected that Fox’s shows like The Simpsons will remain on Hulu (of which Disney is now the majority owner), in an attempt to make the service mostly family friendly.
Can Disney+ Compete with Netflix?
With Netflix expected to spend $8B on content next year, Disney will have to spend aggressively in order to keep up with the streaming giant.
While we don’t know all the details like launch date and pricing, we do know is that with their existing film library, upcoming shows in production, and the technology from BAMTech — that they are in the best position of any to compete with Netflix.