According to the top European CEO of the Mouse House, Disney + does not intend to enter the live sports arena in Europe any time soon, which means that the streaming giant will not compete for rights in the Premier League in the UK.
At a Disney + press conference to celebrate the launch of the international service Star on Wednesday, Jan EME President Jan Koeppen of Disney said that sports are not a priority for Disney + in the areas he oversees. , unlike in India, for example, where live cricket the streamer makes its mark at local audiences.
‘We are not currently planning to hold live sporting events at Disney +. As you can imagine, with all the great content we just announced in December, and now with the launch of Star, we have enough to keep us busy here, at least in the short term, ”said Koeppen.
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The remark comes because the auction for Premier League rights in the UK is underway. Currently, live rights are shared between Sky, BT Sport and Amazon, but there are reports that other streamers, such as DAZN, may be interested in acquiring a bundle of games.
Disney, of course, is no stranger to broadcasting the Premier League in the UK after ESPN had the rights to the football competition over the past decade. ESPN finally ended its operations in the UK in 2013 after BT Sport lost in the race for Premier League rights in 2012.
For the time being, Disney + is focused on successfully launching Star on February 23rd. The general entertainment brand, aimed at a more mature audience, will launch directly (with parental controls) as a tile within Disney + and is designed to service in increasingly fierce power wars.
Deadline on Tuesday selected the first eight European originals from Star, while further projects from British producers are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. This original will include 300 movies and 75 TV titles, including Lost, 24, Grey’s Anatomy, The favorite, and Brave heart.
Upcoming series from Disney’s general entertainment studios will also appear with Big sky, Love Victor, en Sonstrande is made available on Star. Other shows, like FX spin-off American horror stories, is in the pipeline.
Luke Bradley-Jones, SVP of direct-to-consumer and general manager of Disney + EMEA, said it would become the ‘exclusive streaming home’ for Disney’s iconic catalog, meaning licensing transactions will eventually pass to the streamer if it wants to grow. its subscriber base of 95 million.
Bradley-Jones also confirmed that every episode of classic comedy The golden girls will be coming to Disney + later this year. The show is currently available on Hulu in the US. “I worked hard at it. Come this summer, you will every season of The golden girls, every episode, ”he said.
Disney + will rise in the UK next week from £ 5.99 to £ 7.99.