A little over a week ago, it was announced that Netflix and Sony struck a massive deal that would have the streaming platform gain access to the Sony library of films, including exclusive rights to show major Sony releases starting with 2022 theatrical films. At the time, it looked like Sony and Netflix were getting into bed with each other in a way that would really benefit both parties. Well, the wind is out of the sails of that deal just a little bit thanks to Disney, who decided to make its own deal with Sony.
According to the two studios, Disney and Sony have entered into a huge deal that will see Sony films heading over to Disney’s streaming services (Disney+ and Hulu), as well as the linear networks (ABC, Disney Channels, Freeform, FX, and National Geographic) beginning in 2022. While this deal sounds awfully similar to the one struck between Sony and Netflix, there is one major difference. Netflix will get the Sony theatrical releases during the “Pay 1 TV Window,” while Disney doesn’t get access until the “Pay 2 Window.”
Yes, the Streaming Wars are so complicated when it comes to licensing agreements that we all have to learn industry jargon like Pay 1 and Pay 2 windows. Basically, a film is released in theaters and after weeks or months, the feature will head to VOD and home video. Then, roughly a little more than a year after the film is released in theaters, the Pay 1 TV window begins, which is when we’ll see the films head to Netflix. From there, after some time, the Pay 1 window expires and we enter the Pay 2 window, which is when we’ll see Disney gain access, as well. Make sense?
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“This landmark multi-year, platform-agnostic agreement guarantees the team at Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution a tremendous amount of flexibility and breadth of programming possibilities to leverage Sony’s rich slate of award-winning action and family films across our direct-to-consumer services and linear channels,” said Chuck Saftler, head of Business Operations for ABC, Freeform, FX Networks, and Acquisitions. “This is a win for fans, who will benefit from the ability to access the very best content from two of Hollywood’s most prolific studios across a multitude of viewing platforms and experiences.”
Keith Le Goy, president, Worldwide Distribution and Networks, Sony Pictures Entertainment, added, “This groundbreaking agreement reconfirms the unique and enduring value of our movies to film lovers and the platforms and networks that serve them. We are thrilled to team up with Disney on delivering our titles to their viewers and subscribers. This agreement cements a key piece of our film distribution strategy, which is to maximize the value of each of our films, by making them available to consumers across all windows with a wide range of key partners.”
So why would Disney want to enter this deal? Well, obviously, as we’ve said many times before, the Streaming Wars is fought with original content and programming libraries. And the arsenal of Sony projects is some heavy ammunition that everyone wants access to, considering the studio doesn’t have its own streaming service to use exclusively. And also, Disney wants its hands on the “Spider-Man” film library, to help add to its own Marvel library on Disney+. The studio wants to have the complete MCU, a claim that no other streaming service can make, and it will have that with this deal, eventually.
Again, the terms of this deal begin in 2022 and run until 2026. So, we’ll have to see how Sony’s library impacts the Streaming Wars beginning next year.