24 votes

Disney+, Hulu merged app to launch next month, Bob Iger says

29 comments

  1. [27]
    JXM
    Link
    I can see both sides of this. I can see why they’d want it to be two separate apps, one for family friendly content (Disney+) and one for “grown up” content (Hulu). Having one app makes it easier...

    I can see both sides of this. I can see why they’d want it to be two separate apps, one for family friendly content (Disney+) and one for “grown up” content (Hulu).

    Having one app makes it easier to sell as a single destination though.

    I think Disney is a big enough empire to sustain two different silos though. Putting a bunch of content like Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia in the same app as Bluey seems weird to me.

    Maybe they’ll just have a walled off kids section?

    15 votes
    1. [15]
      Grumble4681
      Link Parent
      Yeah I wonder what the unified app name will be. The article could be seen as speculation that it will use Hulu branding.

      Yeah I wonder what the unified app name will be. The article could be seen as speculation that it will use Hulu branding.

      The combination of Disney+ and Hulu into one app also will potentially pave the way for Disney to launch the Hulu brand globally. Since its inception, Hulu has been available only in the U.S. The standing theory on Wall Street is that Disney, even after securing operational control over Hulu, has avoided launching it outside the U.S. in order to not increase Hulu’s value (which would mean paying more to buy out Comcast’s stake).

      To date, however, Disney has not announced any plans to make Hulu a global brand.

      5 votes
      1. [9]
        babypuncher
        Link Parent
        Can I cast a vote for Hulsney+?

        Yeah I wonder what the unified app name will be.

        Can I cast a vote for Hulsney+?

        10 votes
        1. [8]
          TanyaJLaird
          Link Parent
          I prefer giving it the ugliest name I can think of. How about Dulu? Or perhaps Hisney. Or maybe Dilnu.

          I prefer giving it the ugliest name I can think of. How about Dulu?

          Or perhaps Hisney.

          Or maybe Dilnu.

          7 votes
          1. [5]
            JXM
            Link Parent
            Hisney, for all your male skewing, lean in programming.
            6 votes
            1. [4]
              GenuinelyCrooked
              Link Parent
              Is there more context for this?

              Is there more context for this?

              1 vote
              1. Grzmot
                Link Parent
                I believe there was a hbo and discovery merge recently and this is one of the slides that the execs used to justify the move.

                I believe there was a hbo and discovery merge recently and this is one of the slides that the execs used to justify the move.

                2 votes
              2. CannibalisticApple
                Link Parent
                Looks like this is probably a meme from when the HBO/Discovery+ merger was announced. When you look at it, the overall programming and demographics are pretty different between the two.

                Looks like this is probably a meme from when the HBO/Discovery+ merger was announced. When you look at it, the overall programming and demographics are pretty different between the two.

                1 vote
              3. JXM
                Link Parent
                It’s from a famously bad Warner Bros. Discovery presentation where they talked about how HBO Max was for men and Discovery was for women.

                It’s from a famously bad Warner Bros. Discovery presentation where they talked about how HBO Max was for men and Discovery was for women.

                1 vote
          2. babypuncher
            Link Parent
            Hisney sounds like it would appeal to the gen-z crowd, let's go with that.

            Hisney sounds like it would appeal to the gen-z crowd, let's go with that.

            2 votes
      2. [2]
        first-must-burn
        Link Parent
        They should call it Hulu++ and have a UI controlled by generic template metaprogramming.

        They should call it Hulu++ and have a UI controlled by generic template metaprogramming.

        4 votes
        1. arghdos
          Link Parent
          Sorry kids, you can’t watch Bluey until you get the SFINAE template for a Heeler to compile.

          Sorry kids, you can’t watch Bluey until you get the SFINAE template for a Heeler to compile.

          2 votes
      3. [3]
        ZarK
        Link Parent
        It doesn’t make sense to me to try to market Hulu around the world when Disney is already well known?

        It doesn’t make sense to me to try to market Hulu around the world when Disney is already well known?

        3 votes
        1. Grumble4681
          Link Parent
          It depends on how they might view the content displayed in the app impacts the Disney brand. When Discovery and WarnerMedia merged, they had concerns about using HBO branding in the name of the...

          It depends on how they might view the content displayed in the app impacts the Disney brand. When Discovery and WarnerMedia merged, they had concerns about using HBO branding in the name of the app, so they renamed HBO Max to Max.

          That's not a 1:1 comparison of course, Disney is more widely known than HBO is I would presume, Disney has more family friendly branding, and Disney already has global trademarks and what not for that name, but not necessarily for Hulu (they may or may not, but if they weren't using the brand globally then it's a possibility without diving in deep to find out). However, let's say that HBO was willing to license out Game of Thrones or something years from now, would Disney be put off from throwing their hat in the ring if they thought it might look bad to have on Disney+? It could be anything of course, not just GoT.

          That's why I am curious what they will do, because there's a variety of factors that go into it beyond the information I know to make a reasonable guess.

          3 votes
        2. Hollow
          Link Parent
          For the same reason Disney would release more mature movies under Touchstone instead of their own name - Disney has a fun, family-friendly brand identity that doesn't mesh Hulu titles like with,...

          For the same reason Disney would release more mature movies under Touchstone instead of their own name - Disney has a fun, family-friendly brand identity that doesn't mesh Hulu titles like with, say, Alien.

          3 votes
    2. [3]
      Artren
      Link Parent
      It's already that way in Canada. IASIP, Futurama, and all the Frozen/Disney classic movies live side by side here.

      It's already that way in Canada. IASIP, Futurama, and all the Frozen/Disney classic movies live side by side here.

      5 votes
      1. [2]
        cfabbro
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        Yeah, all their ST★R content, even the more adult-oriented stuff, is already on Disney+ here in Canada. E.g. I just finished watching the new season of What We Do in the Shadows on Disney+.

        Yeah, all their ST★R content, even the more adult-oriented stuff, is already on Disney+ here in Canada. E.g. I just finished watching the new season of What We Do in the Shadows on Disney+.

        4 votes
        1. Artren
          Link Parent
          That show is amazing and highly recommended anyone who sees this comment go watch it now. I fell in love with it

          That show is amazing and highly recommended anyone who sees this comment go watch it now. I fell in love with it

          5 votes
    3. [2]
      Comment deleted by author
      Link Parent
      1. JXM
        Link Parent
        I think it’s different here because Disney is specifically marketed and known as a family-friendly brand.

        I think it’s different here because Disney is specifically marketed and known as a family-friendly brand.

        1 vote
    4. [2]
      Habituallytired
      Link Parent
      I personally love the idea of them just having one app. I think D+ should be the destination app, with better sorting and searching, along with playlists and the ability to censor or uncensor what...

      I personally love the idea of them just having one app. I think D+ should be the destination app, with better sorting and searching, along with playlists and the ability to censor or uncensor what you watch, along with a walled off just for kids area like you suggest.

      2 votes
      1. boxer_dogs_dance
        Link Parent
        D+ makes me think of school, or possibly porn lol. Disney plus would be great.

        D+ makes me think of school, or possibly porn lol. Disney plus would be great.

        2 votes
    5. [2]
      hushbucket
      Link Parent
      So like Netflix? haha.

      Putting a bunch of content like Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia in the same app as Bluey seems weird to me.

      So like Netflix? haha.

      2 votes
      1. JXM
        Link Parent
        I think it’s different here because Disney is specifically marketed and known as a family-friendly brand.

        I think it’s different here because Disney is specifically marketed and known as a family-friendly brand.

    6. [3]
      balooga
      Link Parent
      I hope they beef up the parental controls then. Right now if you have a kids profile there are tons of kids movies it won’t have access to, presumably because of a PG rating. Yet it’s packed to...

      Maybe they’ll just have a walled off kids section?

      I hope they beef up the parental controls then. Right now if you have a kids profile there are tons of kids movies it won’t have access to, presumably because of a PG rating. Yet it’s packed to the brim with some of the most mind-numbing preschool TV dreck imaginable. The only alternative is a non-kids profile which is full of Marvel ads and the like which can be scary for little ones. I wish there was a more granular way to specify what we (parents) do and do not want made available to our kids.

      2 votes
      1. Jerutix
        Link Parent
        For real - the parental settings are terrible. And the way that G falls later than TV-Y7 is annoying. I wish the settings were more like on Screen Time restrictions, where movie ratings and tv...

        For real - the parental settings are terrible. And the way that G falls later than TV-Y7 is annoying. I wish the settings were more like on Screen Time restrictions, where movie ratings and tv ratings are separated and specifically controllable.

        3 votes
      2. hushbucket
        Link Parent
        Valid criticism imo. Not for everyone but this is definitely a reason why spinning up your own media server is great: ultra fine control of content and access

        Valid criticism imo. Not for everyone but this is definitely a reason why spinning up your own media server is great: ultra fine control of content and access

        2 votes
  2. Akir
    Link
    I look forward to not having to switch apps if I want to switch between classic and modern Simpsons.

    I look forward to not having to switch apps if I want to switch between classic and modern Simpsons.

    3 votes
  3. password1
    Link
    I’m curious if this will be available in France when merged. I believe Hulu isn’t available here right now.

    I’m curious if this will be available in France when merged. I believe Hulu isn’t available here right now.

    1 vote