With Disney looking to make its direct-to-consumer business more profitable, it has been reducing the number of originals it creates and cut back on how much general entertainment content it makes.

According to Deadline, Disney is going to reduce the number of pan-Nordic originals it commissions for Disney+ and instead focus on individual territories in Scandinavia.

The EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) division has been informing producers across the Nordic region about their change in stragey, instead they will be just focusing on making content in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark.

Instead of fully financing new Pan-Nordic originals for Disney+, the company will access pre-buy, license, and co-production opportunities while investing in local commissions that it can release globally, such as “Ice Road Rescue.”

However, unscripted commissioning will continue in Finland, where Disney still has linear channels. Details on Disney’s plans for its scripted content in Finland will be revealed at a later date.

So far, some of the originals created in the Scandinavian region include “To Cook a Bear” and “Whiskey on the Rocks,” which are due to be released later this year on Disney+. Some of the originals created in Finland include “Silent Library” and “Melkein MENSA.”

As a result of this move, a small number of staff, including Senior Manager of Original Programming Disney+ Nordics Nanna Mailand-Mercado, have been impacted by this change,

In a statement, Disney confirmed the change:

“We are still looking at local productions, including drama, and are looking forward to launching Whiskey on the Rocks and To Cook a Bear on Disney+. What we have seen is that there are differences in consumption and conditions between the respective Nordic countries, and we are therefore focusing on hyperlocal content rather than cross-Nordic.”

Since the launch of Disney+, over 70 originals have been commissioned in the EMEA region including “Renegade Nell”, “Extraordinary” and “Everything Is Fine”. Disney recently confirmed they are looking to invest over a billion dollars over the next five years on new content within the region.

Disney has been making many changes to its strategy for Disney+, with Bob Iger previously saying that not every country is equal and that some countries will have a higher number of originals when it makes business sense. It is also looking to create more shows with global appeal, though it is still required by law in some countries across the EMEA region that some local investment is made to protect the local film industry.

Apparently, there is an ongoing review of Disney+ across the EMEA region, which is resulting in a shift in investment levels. This is very apparent with the reduction in overall originals being released and announced. The recent announcement that Disney+ picked up the rights to the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League football for Sweden and Denmark highlights a shift in strategy.

Roger’s Take: With Disney drastically reducing the number of shows and films it creates across the board, it shouldn’t come as a big surprise to hear that a similar thing is happening internationally. We’ve already seen a reduction in the number of new commissions across the globe as studios adapt to a changing landscape where chasing subscribers is no longer the top priority, instead focusing on profitability.  While we are likely going to see more originals aimed a global audience, it’s probably going to work out cheaper for Disney to license some local content to fillfil quotas and appeal to local audiences.

What do you think of this change?  Let me know on social media!

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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