Free Newsletter

Disney CEO Iger considering online video subscription service

March 4, 2009 — 10:36am ET | By Pete Wylie

Tools

Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger told an investors conference in Florida that the company is considering an online subscription club, which would stream online video of Disney TV shows and movies or make them available for download. Iger, the latest cable content chief to stir the pot about online video offerings, said offering content online for free supported by ads was better than letting it fall prey to piracy, for which the company receives nothing at all.

"We're trying to find ways to make it work for us and not fight it," Iger said. "From our perspective, the computer is a very, very important place to entertain people."

Disney is actively searching for a way to make IP delivery of its content a revenue stream, in light of slumping DVD sales and changing consumer behavior. But Iger remained optimistic, and said the company's core audience still has the same basic desire to be entertained, so it's up to Disney to ascertain the ways they want to consume that entertainment in a rapidly digitizing world. He did not give any details as to price points or terms for the proposed service.

For more:
- see the CNN Money article here