Disney+

Source: Disney

Disney+

Disney+ will launch in the UK and western Europe on 24 March – a week earlier than previously planned.

The pricing of the SVoD has been confirmed at £5.99 per month or an annual £59.99. In Europe, the costs are €6.99 and €69.99 respectively.

Disney has also brought forward the service in Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria and Switzerland, with a wider European launch including the Nordics, Belgium and Portugal following in the summer.

Disney+ is already available in the Netherlands, where streaming uptake has outpaced the rest of Europe, along with the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Currently, Disney operates its DisneyLife SVoD service in the UK and Ireland, though this will become Disney+ in March.

Disney said that “nearly all” major mobile and connected TV devices, including gaming consoles, streaming media players, and smart TVs, will carry the new service.

Subscribers will be offered original series such as the in-demand live-action Star Wars series The Mandalorian, but did not state if those that had already rolled out in the US would be launched as box-sets or dropped episodically.

Pushing the service launch forwards may be an attempt to slow illegal downloading. There have been several reports of widespread pirating of The Mandalorian, largely spurred on by the viral success of the show’s ‘Baby Yoda’ character.

Disney+, part of Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International, will offer features and TV shows from Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar and National Geographic brands.

Launch originals include Toy Story spin-off Forky Asks a Question; High School Musical: The Musical – The Series; a Lady And The Tramp remake; and Nat Geo factual series The World According To Jeff Goldblum.

This story first appeared on Screen’s sister site Broadcast