The Walt Disney Company has no forthcoming plan to stream traditional commercial advertising during on-demand programming on its Disney Plus app, despite a small tweak to its terms of service that appears to give the company permission to do so in the future, according to multiple sources who spoke with The Desk this week.
The affirmation comes after social media users began noticing an update ot Disney’s user agreements in certain European countries that said the entertainment giant was giving itself permission to “include promotional content, sponsorships, and advertisements before/after playback of content and in channels, live/as-live, special events, and any third-party services content.”
Entertainment-focused blogs ran wild with the update, claiming Disney was soon going to show traditional commercial advertising spots to streamers across all subscription tiers, including those who pay for the privilege to watch shows and movies without interruptions.
But two sources at Disney familiar with the change said the updated terms was intended to give Disney greater leeway to incorporate promotional spots for its other movies, TV shows and live events before and after content streams on Disney Plus, not traditional commercial spots.
The use of the word “advertising” was intended to help its terms of service remain consistent across regions where the streaming platform is available, including countries where promotional spots for its own shows and other content might be legally considered an advertisement, even if the spots are not promoting third-party products or services.
To that end, Disney’s plan is similar to what other streamers, including Paramount Plus, do with their platforms now. Paramount Plus has long streamed promotional spots for its own shows, movies and live events before content on its ad-free tier.
As with other streaming services, live channels and sports simulcasts on Disney Plus still have traditional TV spots, given the nature of those broadcasts.
Disney is pointing confused subscribers to its support page, which says subscribers who pay for the premium version of Disney Plus will continue to have access to movies and shows “without commercial interruption.”
Promotional spots that are offered through Disney Plus before and after content can be skipped at any time, whether a user pays for ad-free streaming or not.
