{"id":22401,"date":"2022-12-09T22:37:23","date_gmt":"2022-12-09T22:37:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/12\/09\/our-top-takeaways-after-using-disneys-ad-tier\/"},"modified":"2022-12-09T22:37:23","modified_gmt":"2022-12-09T22:37:23","slug":"our-top-takeaways-after-using-disneys-ad-tier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/12\/09\/our-top-takeaways-after-using-disneys-ad-tier\/","title":{"rendered":"Our Top Takeaways After Using Disney+’s Ad Tier"},"content":{"rendered":"

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It\u2019s the happiest place on earth\u2014for advertisers, that is.<\/p>\n

Around nine months after Disney announced ads would be coming to its flagship streaming service<\/a>, Disney+ Basic launched on Thursday, giving subscribers an ad-supported offering that comes in at $7.99 per month.<\/p>\n

Disney\u2019s newest tier is only available in the U.S., and is expected to land in other countries next year. It offers pretty much everything that the streamer\u2019s ad-free tier has, including the full catalog of content, multiple profiles, concurrent viewing and high-quality formats. However, features not available at launch include downloads, GroupWatch, SharePlay and Dolby Atmos.<\/p>\n

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Following Netflix debuting its Basic with Ads<\/a> plan, which rolled out on an accelerated timeline and costs $6.99 per month, Adweek spent a day learning the ins and outs of the product. Now, it\u2019s Disney+\u2019s turn.<\/p>\n

From signing up to the overall experience, here\u2019s everything you need to know about using Disney+ Basic:<\/p>\n

Signing up and bundling up<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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Disney+ also revealed new bundling plans.<\/span>Disney+<\/cite><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Signing up for Disney+ Basic is fairly straightforward as long as you don\u2019t get confused by all the new bundling plan names (which include somewhat vague monikers such as Duo Basic and Trio Premium) and price hikes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The streamer used to charge $7.99 for its ad-free tier. But now that the company has an AVOD priced at $7.99, its ad-free version has been bumped to $10.99.<\/p>\n

Unlike Netflix Basic with Ads, Disney+ isn\u2019t debuting with targeting capabilities, instead opting to deliver ads run of network, meaning there\u2019s no targeting, at launch. Still, like Netflix, Disney+ collects date of birth and gender information at sign-up to use for later targeting, though the latter doesn\u2019t necessarily need to be specified. Options include: woman, man, non-binary and prefer not to say.<\/p>\n

The Adweek team made the decision not to give Disney+ our gender information when we made separate profiles and were able to compare the different ads we were served.<\/p>\n

The overall ad experience<\/strong><\/h4>\n

At launch, Disney+ will mostly include 15- and 30-second spots (as well as some 45-second spots depending on creative) that will air in pre- and mid-roll ads. However, Disney ad sales chief Rita Ferro recently told Adweek the company would continue testing to create the best experience for viewers, and that\u2019s what Adweek experienced throughout using the product.<\/p>\n

Though there were mostly 15- and 30-second ads, Adweek saw multiple 45-second ads and, surprisingly, a five-second ad for Oscar Mayer.<\/p>\n

Our experience overall was relatively seamless with only a few minor hiccups.<\/p>\n

The first program Adweek tried to watch on a browser crashed after a 45-second pre-roll with two spots, but upon a refresh (and needing to watch two more ads), there weren\u2019t any other problems. In another instance, a Taco Bell ad started to play without audio before it was quickly bounced for a Pampers ad. However, these issues were few and far between.<\/p>\n

Though there were a few exceptions, ad breaks tended to come during scene breaks and didn\u2019t distract from the overall experience. And in addition to testing ad formats, the platform appears to be testing for the right amount of breaks.<\/p>\n

For instance, the first 40-minute episode of Andor had a 45-second pre-roll and two one-minute ad breaks with 30- and 15-second spots. However, a similarly timed episode of She-Hulk had three pod breaks.<\/p>\n

Shorter shows such as the animated series The Clone Wars only had a single one-minute ad break in addition to pre-roll spots.<\/p>\n

Disney+\u2019s goal is to have 4-minute ad loads<\/a>\u00a0per hour when the inventory is fully sold, but Ferro said the company intentionally undersold its inventory at launch to ensure high quality.<\/p>\n

So while there were plenty of ads, more capabilities and larger ad loads are on the way as Disney+ builds up its audience and expands its targeting and measurement abilities.<\/p>\n

In addition, ads can\u2019t be skipped over or fast-forwarded, but they can be paused. You can take screenshots of ads, but not of Disney+\u2019s content. And if a user jumps back into the episode before an ad break, they will be served more spots, even if they already went through the pod.<\/p>\n

Brands for a brand-new offering<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Disney+ Basic launched with more than 100 partners across every major holding company and more than a dozen categories, including retail, apparel, autos, financial services, restaurants, technology, telecom, CPG and travel.<\/p>\n

Brands served to Adweek\u2019s account included Chanel, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, JC Penny, Old Navy, Pizza Hut, Visionworks, DoorDash, Chick-fil-A, Panera, Dupixent, Royal Caribbean, Westin, Sleep Number, Walmart, Fisher-Price, Olay and Aflac.<\/p>\n

Additionally, Adweek was served several spots twice, including videos for Carnival\u2019s Funderstruck campaign, several pieces of Eggland\u2019s Best creative, a Dior spot featuring Johnny Depp, Nintendo Switch, The General with Shaq, Lego featuring Katy Perry, T-Mobile and more.<\/p>\n

However, Disney is enacting a strict frequency cap for its advertisers at launch. Ferro told Adweek that Disney+ has a \u201cmore strict\u201d frequency cap than most platforms, limiting spots to one per hour, two per day and 12 per week. This applies per user profile.<\/p>\n

So though Adweek saw up to three spots from any one brand, there was no instance of any particular creative playing more than twice, despite watching on multiple devices from multiple locations at various times of the day.<\/p>\n

Out of the dozens and dozens of ads we consumed, only Toyota had built-in subtitles for accessibility, which were in each spot airing from the auto company.<\/p>\n

At launch, the company will not have competitor movie studios, network competitors, alcohol brands or political advertising on the platform.<\/p>\n

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Kids watch commercial-free<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Even with no targeting at launch, audiences are still separated by 18+ and under-17. There\u2019s also an option to create a profile for kids in \u201cjunior mode.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ferro told Adweek there won\u2019t be any advertising in junior mode, and there will be no advertising in pre-school content, which proved true.<\/p>\n

As advanced targeting rolls out, including DAR and other opportunities, those offerings will only apply to users who are 18-plus. And while profiles for those under 17 do have ads, they will remain non-targeted.<\/p>\n

Our final thoughts<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Though it\u2019s early days for Disney+\u2019s ad tier, the results are promising.<\/p>\n

The tier doesn\u2019t necessarily have the capabilities of Hulu\u2019s ad offering at launch, but it\u2019s easy to see those coming quickly as Disney builds up its audience. After all, Disney+\u2019s ad tier seemed to work similarly to Hulu\u2019s, even down to the ad pods being highlighted in yellow while commercials played.<\/p>\n

And strict frequency caps, safety controls and a lack of ads on kids programming make Disney+ Basic accessible and usable for all ages.<\/p>\n

Ferro previously told Adweek marketers wanted to advertise on Disney+<\/a> long before an ad tier was ever announced. So for marketers who want to be seen alongside content that includes everything from Star Wars to Marvel, Disney\u2019s Ad-vengers have assembled a solid launch.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n