Disney will launch a new general entertainment streaming service with the Star brand name in 2021 across the world, Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced on the company's quarterly earnings call on Tuesday. It will bring in content from ABC Studios, Fox Television, FX, Freeform, Searchlight, and 20th Century Studios — all owned by Disney. Star already has a general entertainment service called Hotstar — available in India as Disney+ Hotstar — but Chapek didn't refer to it as that, which suggests that this will be a new service.
A spokesperson for Disney Star India told Gadgets 360 it had no further comment.
Chapek said the new Star-branded general entertainment offering will be “fully integrated” intoDisney+in many markets. That means it could be part ofDisney+ Hotstarin India. Select TV shows and movies fromABC Studios,Fox Television,FX, Searchlight, and 20th Century Studios are already available on Disney+ Hotstar, and it simply doesn't make sense to have two platforms carrying theStarbrand name in the country.
Asked whyDisneywas launching a new Star-branded service rather than expandHulu(a general entertainment service available in the US and Japan) worldwide, Chapek said that this new platform won't license any third-party content, unlike Hulu. That means all the content will be Disney-owned. Additionally, Chapek admitted that Hulu has “no brand awareness” nor any international licenses outside the US.
“We want to mirror the successful Disney+ strategy by using our Disney+ technical platform, rooting it in content that we already own, and distributing it under a successful international brand that we also already own, which is, of course, Star, and then bringing it to market in a very close association to Disney,” Chapek added on the quarterly earnings call.
The new Star-branded general entertainment service will launch in 2021 globally, not including the US. More information will be revealed at an upcoming Disney investors day.
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