The Force is Coming
Netflix and Disney?
Netflix’s huge exclusive deal for Disney movies, which was negotiated in 2012, will finally begin to bear fruit this September. This deal encompasses the complete output of Disney, including Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar.
In a blog post, Netflix’s head of content, Ted Sarandos, announced that “from September onwards, Netflix will become the exclusive US pay TV home of the latest films from Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm and Pixar.”
The deal actually began to take effect for all films released in theaters since the start of 2016 (sorry, no new “Star Wars”). But we didn’t know how long it would take those releases to make their way out of theaters, and then through the DVD, Blu-ray, and digital release schedule. Now we know they will start to land on Netflix in September.
This Disney deal fits in with Netflix’s push towards exclusive licenses, which the company has characterized as more valuable moving forward. And it will mean these titles won’t be available on competitors like Hulu and Amazon Prime.