TIM announces Disney+ distribution deal

The Mandalorian

Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) has announced a multi-year deal with Disney that will see Disney+ exclusively carried by its TIMVision platform in the country.

The operator confirmed that the upcoming streamer will be exclusively distributed by TIMVision and that the SVOD will be offered in a bundle with its fibre broadband package.

Disney+ launches in Italy, along with the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland on March 24. They join the Netherlands, the only European country where Disney+ is currently available.

TIM CEO Luigi Gubitosi said: “We are proud that Disney has chosen TIM as its strategic partner in Italy. This is an agreement that is part of the alliance strategy with major international players that TIM is pursuing in various sectors, to offer cutting-edge products and services. TIMVision, adding Disney+ to its offer, thus becomes the most complete platform of the content market in Italy, consolidating its strategy as the main aggregator of premium content on the Italian television scene, in a context in which the convergence between telecommunications and content will increasingly play a key role in the future of the Group, thanks to the development of the ultra-wide band and 5G.”

Disney DTC chairman Kevin Mayer, said: “We are happy to count TIM among our launch partners and we look forward to offering their customers all the amazing content available on Disney+. We have created a unique experience geared towards our fans in Italy, who have a special long-standing connection with Disney and all the exceptional brands that make up our portfolio.”

This announcement comes at the end of a week where Disney agreed to a distribution deal with Comcast-owned Sky in the UK. The non-exclusive deal will see the Disney+ app added to Sky Q in the country and also includes the first-pay window for 20th Century (fka 20th Century Fox) titles.

Disney has also unveiled its content lineup in the country at launch, with over 500 films, more than 350 series and 26 originals. Titles include iconic animated series The Simpsons, the entire library of Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel films, and Disney+ originals such as The Mandalorian and Lady & The Tramp.