It’s been four years in the making, but this September the exclusivity deal between Disney and streaming content powerhouse Netflix will take effect. Essentially, it means any Disney, Marvel, Pixar, or Lucasfilm release will be exclusive to Netflix in the same period of time it would normally be shown on cable networks like HBO or Showtime. The movies might eventually get shown on those premium channels, but not for a while. It also means none of those movies will ever be available on Hulu or Amazon Prime. Sorry folks!
The update was touted in a new blog post by Netflix’s content boss Ted Sarandos which, as the Verge rightly points out, can’t help but sound a little smug. The deal will entail Netflix to pay multiple millions of dollars per year to remain exclusive to the Disney brand; with movies like Captain America: Civil War, The Jungle Book, Finding Dory, and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story all among the films in Disney’s 2016 repertoire, the demand for streaming is sure to skyrocket.
So the chain of events for films will now be theaters, Blu-ray and DVD, then straight to Netflix. This gives Netflix an even tighter grip of the steering wheel of digital streaming services. Last month, we told you of Amazon offering a monthly subscription package along with its yearly Prime rate, which will make it easier for people to hop onto that bandwagon. But with the biggest movies of the year going straight to Netflix, bypassing Amazon entirely, it’s another clear “check” in the chess match of content providers.
Let us know what you think of Netflix and Disney making all the money ever in the comments below!
We might be getting a new Captain America, yo!
Image: Disney/Marvel
Kyle Anderson is the Associate Editor for Nerdist. Follow him on Twitter!
