Following the announcement in August claiming Disney would pull its content from Netflix, the streaming service is finally speaking out, according to a recent article posted by Polygon.
As the only streaming service to host its catalog, news of Disney’s own streaming service coming in 2019 affected Netflix greatly, with its stocks declining. But as per the company’s CEO, they are not concerned.
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“Disney is a great brand with great content but internationally we only have it in the Netherlands, Australia and Canada,” Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said, further citing the steaming service’s goal of international growth. “So although it’s [Disney] got an enormously significant brand, in terms of its significance relative to growth, you can see that we’ve done very well in international without it.”
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But if news of Disney’s departure from Netflix is bringing you distress, Ted Sarandos, chief of content at Netflix, offers a glimmer of hope, stating that Netflix would be “thrilled to partner with them when they’re ready to.”
Sarandos also believes that Disney is only following a trend that is beginning to appear of networks and studios starting their own competing services rather than licensing to already established platforms like Netflix. “I think that everyone is going to have their own strategies and it’s exciting that everyone is trying to make over-the-top (OTT) television better and better.”
As for Disney’s own streaming service that was promised, which is expected to have rights to movies from Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm, CEO Bob Iger says that there is a “very rich treasure trove of content” for the app, making for a collection that would have Ariel singing.
