“Disney+” Excitement

On November 8th, 2018, Disney announced their plans for Disney Plus, a video streaming service for exclusive Disney titles to be released in late 2019. A year has passed, and the time has finally arrived; in a few days, on November 12th, Disney Plus will be available to the public, but will it be able to live up to the hype? Disney Plus has been met with a fine balance between skepticism and hope over whether it will be a platform worthy of stepping up to the likes of Hulu and Netflix, or if it will fall into a vast sea of mediocrity. 

There’s a lot to be hopeful for upon the platform’s release, starting with the entirety of the Disney Archives. Almost every single Disney production since the company’s founding will be available to either stream online or download to watch in 4k quality anywhere, and at any time.

This includes anything as far back as Snow White & The Seven Dwarves to the entirety of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), with the possible exception of the new Spiderman movies, given the rocky relationship between Disney and Sony. On top of the Disney archives, there are already brand-new shows set in established Disney series that look very promising, such as The Mandalorian and Loki.

The major difference here between Disney+ and Netflix is quality. Netflix Original Shows provide a platform for typically newer producers to put forth their ideas to the public and see what happens. Some of them, such as Stranger Things, have been award-winning productions that go out on a limb and try things that have never been done before, and others, which shall remain unnamed, are complete and utter garbage.

Disney+, on the other hand, is a platform run by the largest entertainment company in the world. While there may be fewer new offerings, the people behind these shows are the best of the best and can be counted on to release consistently amazing productions, compared to the vast ocean of hit or miss content found on Netflix and Hulu.

Moreover, the introduction of Disney+ will end up draining the two giants quite a bit. Currently, many Disney or Disney-owned productions are being shown on other platforms, especially Netflix.  Bringing in Disney+ will take these movies off other platforms, which is a major downside for those other companies who rely on big-name Disney productions to attract viewers.   It is sure to create hostility between these major corporations.

Another potential weakness with Disney+ is the lack of content compared to its peers. While it is certainly boasting an impressive lineup, the number of titles at its disposal is nowhere near that of its primary competitors, leaving it to rely on nostalgia, public hype, and overall quality to maintain a consumer base.  However, it costs $69.99 a year for the service, still cheaper than other services. It will also be difficult to grow this lineup, as Disney is forced to use its, admittedly massive, collection of subsidiary companies. Eventually there won’t be much to do in terms of new content, and there is a high probability that everything will start to feel the same. 

Despite all these issues, I personally still have very high hopes for Disney+. It looks like a very promising platform and Disney has yet to truly disappoint in recent memory.  These feelings are shared by fellow journalist and LHS senior Sean Long. Sean has been keeping up with the development of the service over the last few months, and sees it as a “very good thing,” going on to say, “I don’t know if it’ll be as big as Netflix or anything, but it’ll certainly create more alternative streaming sources in a monopolized environment.” One thing he didn’t know was the price: “Only $7 a month?! Jumping Jesus on a pogo-stick that’s cheap!” In the end though, he most anticipates the new Disney+ original shows, stating, “Some look better than others, but I’ll definitely be watching Star Wars: The Clone Wars!”

Lafayette High School Senior Jacob Rhodes, on the other hand, is skeptical of the service. When asked whether or not he would be subscribing to it, he responded: “I already own all the Disney movies I’d want to watch again in the future, and the new shows just don’t appeal enough to me to start paying for a whole new thing. That said, if YOU were to pay for such a thing I would be much obliged to take advantage of it!”