Netflix Is In Discussions With Disney to Keep Streaming Star Wars and Marvel
Disney sent shockwaves through the world of streaming media earlier this week when it announced the company was ending its agreement with Netflix in 2019 in order to start its own competitive streaming movie and TV service. So some kind of “Dizflix” is coming, along with a similar ESPN service for sports due next year. But exactly where that leaves the Disney movies that are on Netflix is still not entirely set in stone. Perhaps the Disney titles you can currently watch on Netflix (including Moana, Doctor Strange, and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) might stay there for a while?
Reuters now reports that the future of the Disney/Netflix relationship is in flux, with a “senior Netflix executive” telling the news service that there are “active discussions” between the two companies about “keeping Marvel and Star Wars films after 2019 when new Disney and Pixar movies will stop appearing on the streaming service.”
From that information we can glean that this Disney streaming service will be specifically focused on Disney/Pixar but maybe not include all of their various ancillary studios and brands. The company’s core library is probably strong enough to support a relatively inexpensive streaming service, but with its full lineup of franchises it would be far more appealing to consumers. It sounds, though, like that’s not the way this thing is shaping up.
That could be good news for Netflix fans who aren’t looking to shell out more money each month for their Star Wars/Marvel streaming fix. But it could be bad news if you’re interested in this Disney streaming service, because it might not ultimately be as deep and well-populated as it could be. 2019 is still a ways off, though, and talks and discussions could end a lot of different ways. (Moana, though, is probably gone from Netflix no matter way. Sorry about that.)