Update: It was originally reported by Variety that the tentative name of Disney’s upcoming streaming service would be Disney Play. Variety has since retracted that information. According to Fortune, Disney has confirmed that Disney Play is not the tentative name.
Original Story: For the time being, Disney’s heavily talked about direct-to-consumer streaming service will be called Disney Play. As Netflix continues to shake up the entertainment industry, media conglomerates like Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Disney are in a race to become the second largest streaming provider in this rapidly growing market.
However, industry insiders and experts label Disney as the frontrunner of this race and CEO Bob Iger understands the importance of this battle for market share, referring to Disney Play as the “biggest priority” for the 2019 calendar year in the most recent earnings report.
The CEO also mentioned the promising 2019 lineup that will go straight to the new streaming service, citing highly anticipated films like Toy Story 4, Frozen 2, Star Wars: Episode IX, Captain Marvel and live-action films like Lion King, Little Mermaid, and Dumbo among many others.
Disney hopes this new exclusive content along with returning licenses for past Disney movies and TV shows and the newly acquired 21st Century Fox Intellectual Property will attract many consumers to subscribe to Disney Play in addition to Netflix.
Another advantage Disney has in the industry is the acquired shares of Hulu after the Fox-Disney deal that should wrap up in 2019.
Disney Play is expected to be a short-term label for the streaming service until it makes its debut, which will likely be given another name.
Sources: Variety/Screenrant/Fortune
