Disney Prepares to Be Defeated by Tubi

Imagine you're Bob Iger and you've sunk $100 billion into Disney Plus. You basically bought the entire Fox catalog, you are buying out Hulu... and yet still, you're about to be defeated. And not only are you getting defeated, but it's to the old man who sold you the entire Fox catalog for a massive amount on top of it all. You see, he (Rupert Murdoch) bought a streaming service for $400 million and it's now expected to knock Disney Plus right on out of the top five streaming platforms.

The idea of Disney Plus was first conceived as a strategic response to the changing landscape of media consumption. With the rise of streaming giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu, Disney recognized the need to enter the direct-to-consumer market to leverage its extensive portfolio of beloved content. Bob Iger, then CEO of Disney, played a pivotal role in steering the company towards this new direction.

In August 2017, Disney announced its intention to create its own streaming service, ending its distribution agreement with Netflix for new releases starting in 2019. This move was aimed at reclaiming control over its content and providing a dedicated platform for its vast library of films and television shows. The acquisition of 21st Century Fox in 2019 further bolstered Disney's content library, providing additional franchises and assets that would be crucial for the new service.

The development of Disney Plus involved extensive planning and investment in technology infrastructure. Disney acquired BAMTech, a streaming technology company, to build the platform. BAMTech's expertise in delivering high-quality streaming experiences was instrumental in ensuring that Disney Plus would be a competitive and reliable service.

Disney Plus was designed to be a comprehensive platform for all things Disney. The service's content strategy focused on five main brands: Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. This approach ensured that subscribers would have access to a diverse range of content, from classic animated films and modern blockbusters to original series and documentaries.

But all of that money and all of that development later, Tubi is about to win. And Tubi has had almost no investment whatsoever. It's just a free streaming service that uses ad-based revenue on a 99% licensed content location. It's yet another example of Bob Iger being utterly outplayed. And just like Disney Plus has had to integrate Hulu (and soon ESPN) into its streaming service, it's now looking at the need to incorporate the Tubi model into its bloated packaging. But Disney Plus was pretty-well damaged from the get-go due to a poor business model. And then they slugged it right down into the gutter with horrific mismanagement of their most popular show with the axing of Gina Carano.

I hope it was worth it, Disney. Same to you, Kathy... and Bob.

Your pal,
Pro