Disney's own streaming platform is too late and arrogant, fund manager says
- Disney movies such as "Toy Story 4", "Frozen 2" and a live-action of "The Lion King" will debut already on the new platform
- Netflix's shares were down more than 4 percent on Tuesday in extended trading following Disney's announcement
Disney's announcement of a streaming platform in 2019 comes too late and is "probably arrogant," a U.K.-based fund manager told CNBC Wednesday.
The company is pulling out of Netflix to launch its own consumer streaming service in two years' time, starting in the U.S. to then be expanded worldwide. Disney movies such as "Toy Story 4", "Frozen 2" and a live-action of "The Lion King" will debut on the new platform. However, the decision hasn't convinced everyone.
"I think it's late and it's probably arrogant," Michael Browne, fund manager at Martin Currie, said.
"I have to confess my children are great users of Netflix … They don't watch Disney. They don't see anything of Disney on Netflix. From my point of view sitting there as a consumer I think this is a pretty hollow threat, is Disney content that good that it drives Netflix subscribers? I don't think it is," he said.
Disney and Pixar movies will be removed from Netflix after 2018. But Marvel TV titles will remain.
Disney has been experimenting with streaming since 2015 when it launched DisneyLife. The platform allows customers to watch up to six Disney movies, TV shows, music, audiobooks and e-books online, on a monthly subscription. According to Tech Crunch, this was a way to test the waters before a larger public launch.
Paolo Pescatore, vice president of CCS Insight, a research platform, said in an email that "Disney has been a relatively late player to the online video landscape," but the decision is still big news.
"The move squashes any rumors of Disney acquiring Netflix. But it is a huge compliment to the success Netflix has achieved within a short period of time and a strong validation of its strategy. Removing Disney content will be a setback for Netflix, but expect other content and media owners," he warned.
Netflix seems to be aware of this trend. The firm has recently bought comics publisher Millarworld and it has increased investments in original content. However, its shares were down more than 4 percent on Tuesday in extended trading following Disney's announcement.