In the ever-changing world of TV advertising platforms, we will soon have another player on main street. So will we soon all be advertising on Disney+?
With their multiverse of premium, fan-based content brands like Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars, who wouldn’t want to snap up this advertising space? Fanatical audiences! Must-see viewing! Will we all be fighting for this real estate, with its reported limited availability of four minutes per hour? (Yet to be confirmed by The Walt Disney Company.)
Good for viewers, good for advertisers, right?
The news comes at a pivotal time for the streaming platform ecosystem. According to many industry experts, we’re at or nearing ‘peak streaming’. Content fatigue and recent increases in the cost of living are making households reassess their various content memberships. As we’ve already seen with Netflix, this is leading to people cancelling at least one streaming subscription.
Now all the big platforms are in a battle to make sure that’s not them.
Disney+ introducing a lower cost option to their service is a smart move in this context. Viewers understand the value exchange between paying a premium price and no adverts versus a lower-cost (or free) model with adverts.
The news that adverts will account for no more than four minutes an hour, far less than you see on most commercial TV channels, will protect the quality of the viewing experience, and may have some positive knock-on effects. (More on those later.)
We expect Disney’s overall subscription numbers to increase as a result of this move, or at least show greater resilience in the face of any potential mass offboarding. Disney’s famous content library and loyal audiences have always been sought after by brands. Being able to access both through an ad-funded model should be very attractive.
Another sign of this being a considered decision is that Disney have taken the wise move of protecting children’s profiles. Advertisers won’t be able to access children’s solo viewing time, giving parents the peace of mind and security to keep subscriptions current.
Word on main street is that this advertising space will come with some limits tied to the historical values of the Disney brand. Keeping a brand safe environment is good news for premium offers, but there are still questions about the access alcohol products may receive, for example.
Technology meets creativity
If Disney+ content is to be accessible through Addressable TV advertising, brands with lower ad spends should be able to access this prestigious platform relatively easily, with less budget required to access the biggest screens in the house through this highly targeted method.
For brands already using the big screen, advertising on Disney+ will help add incremental reach to their current campaigns. Whilst C Flight is in its infancy and currently only available across the traditional broadcasters, future roll out to AVOD services should allow us to see just how much incremental reach advertisers are benefitting from on platforms like D+.
Alongside this leap in effectiveness attribution tech, the opening up of Disney’s world to advertisers could have further implications for creativity in TV ads. With four minutes of space available an hour, and Disney’s premium quality output to be sitting next to, ads on Disney+ will have to stand out to have an impact.
And that means creativity. More freedom and ambition to dream big, in a TV ad sector that has played it safe for too long. Four minute movies that condense the wide-eyed wonder of the Disney experience into ads that move hearts and inspire great actions.
Here at Anything is Possible, we love the ever-growing TV market and the advancement in technology enabling almost any brand to tap into this key advertising space. We’re always on the lookout for opportunities for our client’s brands to reach their audiences and we’re looking forward to welcoming Disney to the market.
So if your brand is on TV already and looking for a new way to reach a super-engaged audience, or just at the point to make the leap into a whole new world, talk to us and we can give you the keys to the kingdom…
