Disney Headlines for October 20th, 2023
This week, Disney animation soared, Disney+ pricing increased, and a whole lot of people watched a live sporting event…but not the one you’d guess.
The Walt Disney Company has officially turned 100 years old, and it’s earned plenty of Disney Headlines along the way.
Once Upon a Studio Raises the Dead
Have you watched Once Upon a Studio yet?
If not, you’ll find the animated short on Disney+, and you should watch it immediately.
I say this because some of Disney’s finest animators have created a love letter to Walt Disney Animation Studios, the hub of Disney creativity for a century.
Disney has created new stories for beloved characters from every Disney generation of storytelling.
This nearly nine-minute video features – I kid you not – 563 Disney characters!
Sure, some of them fall into the “blink and you’ll miss them” category, but others, like the Fairy Godmother, Elsa, and Mickey Mouse, play integral roles.
Perhaps the most surprising appearance involves a character we never thought we’d see again.
The Genie from Aladdin appears…and I mean the original one, not Will Smith.
Robin Williams famously had a falling out with Disney, one that lasted until his death in 2014.
Still, when Disney planned this monumental undertaking, everyone agreed that they wanted the Genie to appear.
Since Disney remains staunchly anti-AI when it comes to characters and voices, the studio reached out to the comedian’s estate.
Disney asked for permission to use audio clips of Williams as Genie in Once Upon a Studio. To the company’s shock, the Williams family agreed.
Variety has published an article that explains the process. In reading it, you’ll understand what a remarkable production this is.
Many of the original creators of Disney animated classics returned to illustrate many of the images.
Disney has bragged that 80 percent of the characters are hand-drawn, not computer-animated, a fact that would put a smile on Walt Disney’s face.
The creative team has distilled a century of Disney animation into a few minutes of perfection. It’s a stunning feat.
The Latest Streaming Price Increases
For the second time in 2023, Disney has raised the prices of its various streaming services.
I felt this one personally, as I had to cancel a Hulu account that still had 2005’s Kitchen Confidential and 2014’s Selfie listed in my watchlist.
My three Disney accounts finally reached the point where the Disney Bundle had become much cheaper.
That’s the case for a lot of people this week, as Disney’s new pricing structure flies in the face of past behavior.
During the earliest days of Disney+ and ESPN+, Disney operated the streaming services as loss leaders to grow their subscription totals.
Disney most assuredly does NOT run its streaming businesses that way anymore.
In 2019, Disney+ launched with a discount deal for D23 members and a few other qualifying subscribers.
We could sign up for three years of the service for $140.97, which averages out as $46.99 annually. Folks, that was a deal!
Since then, Disney has introduced an ad-tier and raised the price of Disney+ several times.
As CNET points out, the ad-free version of Disney+ currently costs $14 per month or $140 annually.
In other words, what I once paid for three years of service now buys me a single year. And that won’t be the case next year.
We should be realistic about the fact that the price increases will keep happening.
Disney has lost money on its Direct-to-Consumer services since their inception, and Wall Street threw a tantrum last year.
Now, Disney is working hard to find a price point that customers are willing to pay without canceling.
If you’re currently stuck, you should read that CNET article for a few tips on how to save money on your streaming bill.
Semi-Weekly Cricket Discussion
Disney Headlines morphed into an IPL cricket fan site so gradually I hardly noticed. At least, that’s how it feels sometimes.
I try not to bring up cricket often because I realize it’s not a priority topic for most North American Disney fans.
However, I had to reset the Haven’t Talked about Cricket in X Days counter to zero last week due to Star India sales rumors.
This week, I must reset it again, as something rather staggering has happened, and it’s extremely helpful to Disney.
Currently, Disney is negotiating with several interested parties, one of whom will likely either purchase an ownership interest in Star India or buy it outright.
Most recently, Sony shocked analysts by talking about a deal with Disney, even as the former company tries to complete a similar transaction with a competitor in the region.
Other corporations, investment funds, and billionaires have also sniffed around Star India, which Disney would probably like to sell.
Well, the Mouse caught a break the other day when something good finally happened with Star India, which is currently suffering through a miserable 2023.
What Just Happened?
India played its biggest rival, Pakistan, in a Cricket World Cup match.
Disney livestreamed the broadcast on Disney+ Hotstar, its Star India service. And people watched. I’m talking about a LOT of people!
According to Bloomberg, Hotstar registered 35 million concurrent viewers.
That’s like the entire population of Peru or Malaysia simultaneously watching the same cricket match!
In United States terms, it’d be like everyone in Texas and Alabama simultaneously watching a Cricket World Cup event.
Bloomberg described the feat as “a watershed moment for digital sports viewership across the country.”
To the best of anyone’s knowledge, that’s the largest number of concurrent viewers for the same sports event in streaming history.
In other words, Disney’s negotiating leverage just increased dramatically for its Star India property, which is coincidentally up for sale at the moment.
Disney already had several interested potential bidders and at least two motivated buyers. Now, it has data support that the service is strong.
This is legitimately the first bit of good news regarding Star India since the summer of 2022. It’s a huge deal AND exceptionally well-timed.
Seriously, that cricket match performed so well that I’m surprised none of the cricket players was dating Taylor Swift.
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Feature Photo: Disney