News
Bob Iger spoke with investors at a conference today.
Iger said the priorities for 2018 are getting through the regulatory process of the Fox deal. They have been spending a lot of time thinking about operations post integration.
Iger high lighted Avatar, Marvel properties, FX, and
National Geographic as content they will have to work with once Fox is integrated.
They will move brands such as FX and
Nat Geo to more modern distribution methods.
ESPN Plus will launch late March/early April. It will have over 10,000 events streamed in its first year.
The Disney streaming service will have films from the Disney studios and 5,000 hours of Disney TV content, original TV series, and original movies.
Iger stressed the Disney brand will have less content than Netflix but more branded content and there will be enough there for value.
Initially ESPN Plus will be low priced as the most popular programming will be on the main networks. They won’t offer flexible packages at first but they will eventually. MLB and NHL streaming products will be available as add ons.
There will be 4-5 original series and movies on the Disney service at launch.
The service will launch in the US and then they roll out later to other countries.
Disney has seen growth from new channel providers such as YouTube TV, Hulu, and Sling but they don’t make up for all of the cable losses.
Iger said the NFL remains a valuable product. They felt the Thursday Night Football deal didn’t make sense for them.
Iger said there is no plan for a Black Panther attraction yet but he’s sure people are working on it.
Flex pricing on multi day tickets will be coming later this year. Flex pricing is working on both the bottom line and guest experience.
More Marvel is coming to CA, HK and other parks.
Iger says he loses track of what’s been announced and what hasn’t.
Iger doesn’t view Coco as a franchise but is proud of the movie.
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