Disney’s Family Streaming Bet To Dethrone Netflix

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By CultureBanx Team

  • Disney+ streaming service set to launch November 12
  • African Americans stream videos more frequently on all devices than the total U.S. population

The mouse house wants more of your attention and coins with the launch of its Disney+ streaming service. Disney (DIS +11.54%) will need to use everything in their arsenal to dethrone streaming leader Netflix (NFLX -4.49%), which already has a strong focus on black content. Will family friendly content be enough to gain a strong foothold with African Americans who stream videos more frequently on all devices than the total U.S. population?

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Why This Matters: To stream about 7,500 episodes and 500 movies on Disney’s newly minted platform it will set you back $6.99 per month. Even though this service will cost less than the lowest priced package for Netflix which is $9, it will be important for the company to create authentic original shows. A report from Horowitz Research found black audiences are also content trendsetters, with 58% reporting they want to be the first to know about new content and are more likely to watch shows that reflects their experiences.

Disney estimates they can get anywhere between 60 to 90 million viewers globally by the end of fiscal year 2024

Disney estimates they can get anywhere between 60 to 90 million viewers globally by the end of fiscal year 2024. The company also expects to ramp up its original content with a $1 billion investment in 2020 and $2 billion by 2024. It’s a very aggressive growth strategy as they look to compete against Netflix’s 139 million global subscribers.

One of the easiest ways for Disney to expand its content is to bring on more diverse creators. Apple (AAPL -0.04%) struck a deal with Oprah Winfrey last year and Netflix has been making multi-million dollar moves with black content creators, including the Obamas, Kenya Barris and Shonda Rhimes just to name a few. Of course Amazon (AMZN -0.05%) plans to have a strong stake with black audiences after it struck a deal with Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw production company.

What’s Next:  While Netflix is leading the race, Disney has very deep pockets and could easily out pace the top competitor in this space. They have a strong stable of revenues from Star Wars and Marvel box office movie hits including Black Panther, Captain Marvel and The Avengers, all of which have made a billion dollars or more globally. Disney+ is slated to go live November 12, will you be watching?

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