I’ve been a fan of Netflix since 2000 when I noticed this little postcard that was in the box of my first DVD player that was mentioning how I could rent DVDs by mail. I took a chance and never rented another DVD from Hollywood Video ever again.
I was amazed that they had the foresight to get in the business of online streaming, knowing full well that digital content rather than a DVD was the future. They were very aggressive in purchasing streaming rights and made a risky, yet brilliant move of creating their own content when they shelled out $100 million for the first season of House of Cards. While Netflix has competition from Amazon and Hulu, it’s the biggest competitor is going to come from a studio that they have streamed content from: Disney.
There was a time when Disney was just Mickey Mouse and Princesses. Then they had the brilliant idea of buying Marvel and shelling out $4 billion to buy Star Wars. Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, and Disney Animation: these are the perennial hit movies of late. The biggest winner when it comes to streaming is content, content is king. Disney is at advantage of Netflix because it has an 85-year start on Netflix in creating content and it has the biggest cast of characters that will entice subscribers. On top of that, Disney has promised a Star Wars television show and Marvel shows that will be exclusive to the streaming service. Remember Disney’s plans was divulged before they offered to buy 20th Century Fox from Rupert Murdoch which would include the X-Men movies, Avatar, the Simpsons, and Family Guy. That’s more enticing content. In addition, a Fox deal is supposed to net Disney a majority control of Hulu and the question remains whether Disney will create a separate service or just rebrand Hulu? Regardless, I think Netflix is going to have issues with a Disney streaming service. As a fan of Marvel, Star Wars and all things Disney, I’ll make the streaming switch as will many other subscribers.
