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The launch of over-the-top (OTT) players like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video in India and their aggressive customer acquisition push has prompted the likes of The Walt Disney Company to look at the possibility of licensing kids programming to them.
Talking to analysts, The Walt Disney Company CEO Andy Bird said that the head of the company’s India unit had recently discussed the possibility of licensing kids content to Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The OTT giants are betting heavily on the Indian market, which is witnessing a major transformation in digital content consumption due to the proliferation of smartphones and the launch of 4G services by telecom operators like Reliance Jio.
“I had an interesting meeting with our country manager in India recently, where we own a number of channels. And he was talking about the opportunities there from Netflix and Amazon and discussing the possibility of licensing more to them,” Bird said.
He stated that there is a huge demand for Disney content globally. “So, the demand for Disney is huge from the consumer perspective and from a distribution perspective. And again, we’re seeing I think a world where disruption is definitely on the table and real. But it’s not something that we feel is daunting in terms of the task ahead,” he added.
Disney recently inked an SVOD deal with Star India’s OTT service Hotstar that gave the latter access to Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm and Disney library. Globally, it has licensed content to Netflix and Amazon Prime India.
Bird also said that the “licensing doesn’t have to be off network and it could be original programming as we’ve done with Netflix and Marvel”.
Bird was answering a question about the declining viewership of kids programming in the US. He said that the trend can be attributed to cyclical change in programming and the proliferation of digital platforms offering kids content.
“We’ve seen a decline ratings-wise in kids viewing overall on linear channels. I don’t want to speak for the industry, but I’ll speak for Disney. And I think that’s the result of a couple of things. One, I’ll call it a bit of an off cycle in terms of programming; and two, a proliferation of kids programming in a variety of other places,” he noted.
He also outlined programming initiatives undertaken by the company that will help in improving the ratings.
“We have just debuted a show called ‘Mickey and the Roadster Racers’, which is done extremely well. We have a ‘Tangled’ series that’s hitting soon and a product cycle over the next two years that we feel great about. And so we think that the ratings are likely to improve with the addition of some new shows that we think creatively are very strong,” he added.
He also exuded confidence that the Disney brand is strong enough and that it is a must-have for direct-to-consumer platforms like Hulu and Netflix. He also said that there is a possibility of taking Disney-branded television programming directly to the consumer.
Disney has already launched a direct-to-consumer product in the UK called DisneyLife, which is a combination of movies and television programming besides other Disney properties like digital books and music.
“We’re still in an experimental stage, because we’ve been learning more and more about technology platforms, churn rates, pricing, those sorts of things. But we do know that we have a brand and the product behind it to be able to take it direct-to-consumer. So, I think as we look at the future of our kids programming, we look at it in all likelihood as probably a blend of linear channels, some third-party licensing arrangements and also direct-to-consumer properties,” Bird noted.
Disney sees licensing opportunity in India from OTT war | TelevisionPost.com
Talking to analysts, The Walt Disney Company CEO Andy Bird said that the head of the company’s India unit had recently discussed the possibility of licensing kids content to Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The OTT giants are betting heavily on the Indian market, which is witnessing a major transformation in digital content consumption due to the proliferation of smartphones and the launch of 4G services by telecom operators like Reliance Jio.
“I had an interesting meeting with our country manager in India recently, where we own a number of channels. And he was talking about the opportunities there from Netflix and Amazon and discussing the possibility of licensing more to them,” Bird said.
He stated that there is a huge demand for Disney content globally. “So, the demand for Disney is huge from the consumer perspective and from a distribution perspective. And again, we’re seeing I think a world where disruption is definitely on the table and real. But it’s not something that we feel is daunting in terms of the task ahead,” he added.
Disney recently inked an SVOD deal with Star India’s OTT service Hotstar that gave the latter access to Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm and Disney library. Globally, it has licensed content to Netflix and Amazon Prime India.
Bird also said that the “licensing doesn’t have to be off network and it could be original programming as we’ve done with Netflix and Marvel”.
Bird was answering a question about the declining viewership of kids programming in the US. He said that the trend can be attributed to cyclical change in programming and the proliferation of digital platforms offering kids content.
“We’ve seen a decline ratings-wise in kids viewing overall on linear channels. I don’t want to speak for the industry, but I’ll speak for Disney. And I think that’s the result of a couple of things. One, I’ll call it a bit of an off cycle in terms of programming; and two, a proliferation of kids programming in a variety of other places,” he noted.
He also outlined programming initiatives undertaken by the company that will help in improving the ratings.
“We have just debuted a show called ‘Mickey and the Roadster Racers’, which is done extremely well. We have a ‘Tangled’ series that’s hitting soon and a product cycle over the next two years that we feel great about. And so we think that the ratings are likely to improve with the addition of some new shows that we think creatively are very strong,” he added.
He also exuded confidence that the Disney brand is strong enough and that it is a must-have for direct-to-consumer platforms like Hulu and Netflix. He also said that there is a possibility of taking Disney-branded television programming directly to the consumer.
Disney has already launched a direct-to-consumer product in the UK called DisneyLife, which is a combination of movies and television programming besides other Disney properties like digital books and music.
“We’re still in an experimental stage, because we’ve been learning more and more about technology platforms, churn rates, pricing, those sorts of things. But we do know that we have a brand and the product behind it to be able to take it direct-to-consumer. So, I think as we look at the future of our kids programming, we look at it in all likelihood as probably a blend of linear channels, some third-party licensing arrangements and also direct-to-consumer properties,” Bird noted.
Disney sees licensing opportunity in India from OTT war | TelevisionPost.com
