Disney+ To Introduce Vertical Videos

On Wednesday evening, Disney hosted its sixth annual Global Tech & Data Showcase at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where it revealed that vertical video will be coming to Disney+ in the United States later this year.

Vertical video has become a massive success, especially as the format fits mobile phone screens perfectly and is a major reason why TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Facebook Reels have become to popular.  These small, short, bite-sized videos entertain millions of people each day, and Disney is looking to tap into that popularity. 

According to Disney, the experience will evolve as it expands across news and entertainment and delivers a more personalised, dynamic experience that reinforces Disney+ as a must-visit daily destination.

The introduction of vertical videos is happening following the successful launch of “Verts” on the ESPN app, which Disney describes as a modern video experience that re-imagines the way fans can watch video clips in the ESPN App.

Last year, Disney announced it would be partnering with OpenAI to allow user-generated shorts onto Disney+ featuring many of its popular characters, and it’s likely those shorts will also appear within this new vertical video area within the streaming service.

Disney has already been experimenting with short-form content, such as launching the ABC News daily show, “What You Need to Know”, which is hosted by Rachel Scott and James Longman.

It’s unclear exactly what content will be featured in a vertical format, but apparently, “everything’s on the table”, which could include original short-form programming, repurposed social clips, refashioned scenes from longer-form episodic or feature titles or a combination.

Erin Teague, EVP of Product Management for Disney Entertainment and ESPN, said: 

“We’re also thinking about mobile-first experiences. We know that mobile is an incredible opportunity to turn Disney+ into a true daily destination for fans, so that’s exactly what we’re going to do.

Over the next year, we’re introducing vertical video experiences on Disney+, think all of the short form Disney content you want all in one unified app.  Over time, we’ll evolve these experiences as we explore applications for a variety of formats, categories and content types for a dynamic feed of just what you’re interested in, from sports, news and entertainment, refreshed in real time based on your last visit.”

With younger generations watching more television on their mobile devices, Disney is looking to adapt to their needs, with Erin adding:

“the most important thing is to meet people where they are. … This is what Gen Z and Gen Alpha are expecting. They are not necessarily thinking about sitting down, watching a long-form, two-and-a-half hour piece of content on their phones.”

However, Erin did also explain that they don’t want the experience to be a negative experience:

“We’re obviously thinking about integrating vertical video in ways that are native to core user behaviors.  So, it won’t be a kind of a disjointed, random experience.”

The main focus of the presentation was on advertising, trying to encourage more companies to invest in advertising on Disney’s platforms, and that they are moving forward with new technology to offer more reach to a larger audience, so no doubt, this vertical feed will also include advertising for those on the ad-supported tier.

Roger’s Take:  The old man in me doesn’t really want to see vertical videos within Disney+, because I mainly use the app on my television and watching the odd short on the YouTube TV app always feels awkward, as a huge chunk of the screen is missing. 

However, for those subscribers who use their mobile devices to watch Disney+, having a vertical feed could be very interesting and I know myself that its easy to get into doomstrolling through shorts or reels when you’ve got a spare five minutes, so Disney is recognising that this short form content is valuable, because any time spent on those other video platforms, is time not spent within Disney+ and more importantly, no advertising revenue is coming in.  

While I’m not convinced that vertical video is something I personally would use much within Disney+, I can completely understand why Disney is investing in building this technology into Disney+, so as not to lose more younger viewers to social media platforms.   

Watching “Avengers: Infinity War” in small two minute vertical shorts isn’t ideal, but a one minute short clip of an upcoming series, or just clips of “Abbott Elementary”, would work, I constantly have short clips of “Big Bang Theory” or “Jimmy Kimmel Live” coming up on Shorts feed, so its easy to see how this format does entertain and work well with traditional media.

What do you think about Disney+ adding vertical videos?  Let me know on social media!