Mark Ashman/Disney via Getty Images
Disney reached an agreement with Sony in which Sony’s home entertainment division would handle all Disney releases on DVD and Blu-ray, as well as all physical media production.
This is the latest sign of the decline in physical disk trading. Netflix discontinued its underlying disc-by-mail service last fall, and as industry group Digital Entertainment Group’s 2023 review released this month showed, revenue from disc sales has significantly declined in the streaming era. continues to decline.
Both studios declined to comment when contacted by Deadline.
The new structure will operate on a licensing model, according to people familiar with the deal, which was first reported by the website The Digital Bits. Sony will market, sell and distribute new Disney releases, as well as DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra DVD catalog titles, through retailers and distributors in the United States and Canada.
The changes are part of a larger evaluation of Disney’s strategy to reach consumers and come as the company faces pressure from some investors to become more cost efficient. Restructuring and headcount reductions in 2023 resulted in at least $7.5 billion in cost savings across the company.
Disney has historically been a strength in home entertainment due to the family-like nature of its filmography, both animated and live-action. Repeated viewing made even his early, large investment in VHS tapes in the 1980s a worthwhile investment for the family, and that behavior carried over into his DVD and Blu-ray days.
However, in recent years streaming has become the default option for most consumers. Disney is keenly focused as a company on achieving profitability in the coming months with its flagship streaming service, Disney+, which launched in November 2019. Sony, on the other hand, is not a combatant in the streaming wars that its media peers have been. The company operates niche services like the growing anime outlet Crunchyroll, but without its own integrated entertainment platform, it approaches the studio business differently than its top competitors. ing.
