Disney taps Rebecca Campbell to head a new content group

Disney taps Rebecca Campbell to head a new content group

January 21, 2022: -The Walt Disney Company wants to lure in more global subscribers to its trio of streaming services.

On Wednesday, the entertainment giant said that it had formed an international content group to expand its pipeline in local and regional markets. This group is going to be helmed by Disney streaming executive Rebecca Campbell, directly reporting to CEO Bob Chapek in the newly expanded role of chairman, international content, and operations.

“Great content is what drives the success of our streaming services, and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work closely with the talented creators in our international markets who create new stories with local relevance to delight our audiences around the globe,” Campbell said in a statement.

While Disney sees the subscriber counts grow steadily over the last few months, the explosive adoption it saw in the pandemic has slowed. During the fiscal fourth quarter, which ended October 2, 2021, Disney only added 2.1 million subscribers to Disney+, down from the 12.6 million it said in the previous quarter.

Still, when it reported these figures in November, Chapek reiterated its goal of reaching 230 million to 260 million Disney+ subscribers by the year 2024.

On Wednesday, the company revealed that its total global subscriptions across Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu had topped 179 million as of the end of fiscal 2021. It is unclear how that total splits among the three services.

Disney is looking to double more than the number of countries where its Disney+ service is available by fiscal 2023. The hope is that by reaching over 160 countries in that time frame, the company can boost its subscriber numbers high enough to get its global goal by 2024.

However, it won’t drive significant sign-ups without offering these regions unique and catered content. Disney has already invested in creating original local and regional content, with more than 340 titles already in various stages of development and production.

As part of the announcement on Wednesday, It promoted Michael Paull to the newly created president of Disney streaming. He will oversee all three of the company’s platforms in the whole world under Kareem Daniel’s Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution division.

Joe Earley, who has served as the executive vice president for marking and operations for Disney+, has been tapped to take over as president of Hulu. A yet-to-be-named new head of Disney+ will take over for Paull, while Russell Wolff will continue to serve as head of ESPN+. The three streaming authorities will all report directly to Paull.

“Disney’s direct-to-consumer efforts have progressed at a tremendous pace in just a few short years, and our organization has continued to grow and evolve in support of our ambitious global streaming strategy,” Chapek said.

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Disney taps Rebecca Campbell to head a new content group