Vision - January/February 2009 - (Page 13) Disney-ABC Group How is Disney-ABC leveraging its various platforms: broadcast, cable, online, DVDs, VOD and mobile, to bring content to global consumers? Our strategy is simple, straightforward, and effective—put consumers first. We’ve done well so far because we’ve built our business models around how viewers are actually using our content. This strategy plays out in different ways based on the content, the target audience, and our goals. The recent premiere of Camp Rock is a perfect example of how content can be leveraged across multiple platforms to maximize our performance. We made previews of the movie available three days before the television premiere— through our Disney on Demand VOD service. When the movie officially premiered on Disney Channel on June 20th, it did so with an audio simulcast on Radio Disney and a video simulcast on Sprint and MobiTV devices. The next day, the movie premiered free-to-air on the ABC Television Network, followed by a premiere on the ABC Family cable channel 24 hours later. On the following day, the movie was available online at Disney.com and a week after the movie premiered on Disney Channel, it was re-aired on that platform, transformed into a “Rocka-Long” programming event with song lyrics available both on the TV viewing screen and online at DisneyChannel.com. Each iteration proved successful with the core audience and greatly expanded the reach of this important new franchise. Internationally, Disney Channel’s partner in Singapore—Starhub—provides a great example of serving “media stacking” consumers with a linear channel, a subscription VOD service and a mobile loop service. Combined, these platforms provide a holistic entertainment experience to multi-tasking young viewers who aren’t content to engage in only one activity at a time. We have a similar partnership with PCCW in Hong Kong, and we’re looking to create similar models in other markets. Another example is Germany’s ProSieben’s maxdome service. We were the first content provider to strike a VOD deal with them, and we’re now the company’s biggest contributor of U.S. content. What makes the platform unique is that it is a non-linear offering—the content is only offered on www.ce.org Founded: 2004 Headquarters: Burbank, CA 2008 Media Networks Revenue: $16.1 billion Business Model: Worldwide TV entertainment/news and distribution U.S. Television Network: 228 U.S. station affiliates Employees: 11,000 Stock Symbol: NYSE: DIS Website: www.disneyabctv.com like Club Penguin and the new fairies world, Pixie Hollow. What really sets Disney apart in this space is the ability to offer this content not only online, but also to connect it to Nintendo DS titles, mobile games and the mobile Web. The goal is to provide a truly multi-platform, connected experience. Is the user in control of how they want to access content? Yes, and one of the roles we can play, as a collection of strong brands, is to help users navigate through the tremendous amount of content out there. If you know Disney Channel is for kids and families and ABC Family is for young adults, you can make educated choices about your entertainment content. In this world of constant change and expanding choices, it’s also important to stay close to our viewers. It’s the only way to understand what they’re doing, what they need and what they’ll want next. demand. Fans get our shows on demand, but also can watch episodes online up to seven days before they air on television. And that’s turned out to be very popular. More than 70 percent of the maxdome VOD transactions are preview episodes. How will consumers view content in the future: 24-hour availability anytime, anywhere, any device? According to Nielsen’s May 2008 “Three Screen Report,” about 25 percent of homes in the U.S. have a DVR, 35 percent have VOD and 91 million Americans have a video-capable cell phone—about 36 percent of wireless subscribers in the country. And as many as 119 million people watch 7.5 billion online video streams a month. In the midst of all this, American consumers are watching more TV than ever—the last study I saw showed they were spending an average of four percent more time watching TV in 2008 than in 2007. Today, many consumers are perfectly happy with basic cable service. Others want every digital option available so they can watch a show when it airs via VOD, download it from iTunes and see behind the scenes on their mobile video package. So how consumers will view content going forward will depend on who they are and what they like best. And the number of choices will only grow from here. We have to be flexible enough to meet consumers wherever they fall on this spectrum, and we have to maximize what each platform can do for us as well as for our viewers. How is Disney using social networking to engage its audience? We continue to build community aspects into our websites, so that fans of our content can connect and share the experience. One of our first efforts on this front was the VirtualRush.com community, which was created around ABC Family’s hit series, Greek. The site was a niche social network that centered on college life. It allowed fans of the show to create a profile and upload content to become part of the virtual CyprusRhodes University community alongside characters featured in the series and interact with other fans on the site. Users also could be ranked by the community for a chance to win a walk-on role on Greek and other prizes. We’re also in discussions with social networks like Facebook through Facebook Connect and those using Open Social. Can you talk about the connected entertainment network that allows users to access Disney-branded content in virtual worlds? The Interactive Media Division for Disney has a growing portfolio of virtual worlds Disney has played a big role in the popularity of 3D movies. Will 3D be coming to home televisions anytime soon? We’ve experimented with it a little already. For example, in July the world TV premiere of Walt Disney Picture’s Hannah Montana/ Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert was aired on Disney Channel in 3D. WalMart distributed 25 million pairs of free 3D January/February 2009 13 http://www.disneyabctv.com http://www.Disney.com http://www.VirtualRush.com http://www.VirtualRush.com http://www.DisneyChannel.com http://www.ce.org
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