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    Disney streaming service just got a lot bigger

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments2726 Views
    In this Monday, March 13, 2017, file photo, The Walt Disney Company CEO Robert Iger attends a special screening of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" at Alice Tully Hall in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

    By Tali Arbel, Technology Writer

    NEW YORK (AP) --

    Disney is adding more firepower to its upcoming streaming service .

    Its "Star Wars" and Marvel comic-book movies will be included in the service, making it the only way to stream those movies on demand in the U.S. as part of a monthly subscription. (So, not on Netflix.)

    A price hasn't been announced yet. The service is expected in late 2019 after Disney's current deal with Netflix expires.

    Previously Disney announced the inclusion of just Disney and Pixar movies and Disney TV shows. Adding the "Star Wars" and Marvel movies could make the new service appealing to teenagers and adults, not just families with young children. The Marvel movies include the "Avengers" and "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchises.

    The service will also have original Disney movies, TV series and shorts. Disney CEO Bob Iger said thousands of TV episodes and hundreds of movies will be available, though shows from Disney's ABC network aren't coming to the service.

    Disney said last month that it was considering moving "Star Wars" and Marvel to the new service, but a decision wasn't announced until Thursday.

    Disney's offering is one of many online film and TV options coming from entertainment and tech companies, with more in the works. Disney, for example, is also launching an ESPN sports streaming service early next year. It won't replicate what's on ESPN, for now, so it's expected to be somewhat niche.

    The company's shares slid $4.05, or 4 percent, to $97.46 in Thursday afternoon trading. Investors may have sold because Iger said earnings per share for this fiscal year will be similar to the level for the year that ended on Oct. 1, 2016. Wall Street analysts had predicted growth.

    Tags:DisneyMarvelPixarStar Wars



    Trump taps “Apprentice” producer, Mark Burnett, as special envoy to the U.K.

    Saturday, December 21, 2024
    Television producer Mark Burnett, left, looks on as President Donald Trump arrives for the National Prayer Breakfast, Feb. 2, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

    Mark Burnett, the power producer who helped reintroduce Donald Trump to a national television audience with "The Apprentice," is being tapped by the president-elect as special envoy to the United Kingdom in his upcoming administration.

    "With a distinguished career in television production and business, Mark brings a unique blend of diplomatic acumen and international recognition to this important role," Trump announced Saturday.

    Burnett, who was born in London, helped produce hits like "Survivor" and "The Voice," but is perhaps best known for teaming up with Trump for "The Apprentice," which first aired on NBC in 2004.

    Trump had been well-known in real estate and pop culture circles for decades. But the show helped again make him a household name — though Trump severed ties with NBC in 2015, the same year he launched his first White House run.

    The selection of Burnett continues Trump's trend of filling out his incoming administration with people who have high-profile backgrounds in television or politics, or both — including his choice to be defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, a former co-host of "Fox & Friends Weekend," and ex-television doctor and unsuccessful Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, Mehmet Oz.

    Trump's first campaign in 2016 was rocked by allegations about his conduct on "The Apprentice" and other appearances during his association with NBC, notably in footage in which he said he could sexually assault women and get away with it because he was a "star."

    Almost a decade after he left his reality TV role, Trump's television career remains central to his biography and political rise. The show presented Trump Tower to tens of millions of people as a symbol of power and success before Trump launched his first... Read More

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