The question I have is whether or not Disney is willing to kill their golden goose: DVD sales. If they are willing to cannibalize these sales, then their service is going to be very good. If not, then it probably won't have a competitive price.
And don't think they also don't have staggering content costs. ESPN paid $3.5B just for NFL and NBA rights alone[1].
Ultimately their share holders will decide how much their willing to subsidize the service.
DVD sales peaked in 2006, and are down about 50% from then (~$10 to ~$5 billion), so that goose is already terminally ill. Disney is smart to get ahead of it, not wait until DVD sales drop another 50%.
Eventually, yes. In 2019, when Disney's service is set to launch, how many people do you think will still be buying DVDs? There'll be a few collectors and old people who will never switch to streaming services, but the potential for cannibalization sounds fairly low to me.
And don't think they also don't have staggering content costs. ESPN paid $3.5B just for NFL and NBA rights alone[1].
Ultimately their share holders will decide how much their willing to subsidize the service.
1. https://www.si.com/extra-mustard/2017/06/26/espn-sports-righ...