Getting younger viewers to actually stick around on a streaming platform is no small challenge, and The Walt Disney Company thinks it may have found part of the answer in an unlikely place: TikTok.
The Partnership Behind the Strategy
The Walt Disney Company and TikTok unveiled their collaboration last month, giving users a way to discover and create content using clips from select Disney films and television shows. That library draws from some of the company’s biggest properties, including Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, Lucasfilm, Marvel Studios, and FX.
The partnership works both ways. Disney+ will feature a rotating selection of Disney-related fan content sourced from TikTok, with short-form videos from participating creators appearing on both TikTok itself and Verts, Disney+’s vertical video platform built for mobile viewing.
Why Disney’s CFO Is Optimistic
Disney Chief Financial Officer Hugh Johnston laid out the company’s thinking behind the deal during the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on September 9.
“We’re excited about the TikTok partnership for a variety of reasons,” Johnston said. “…It introduces a different type of consumer into Disney+.”
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Johnston explained what makes this audience distinct from Disney’s usual streaming viewer base. “One, they interact, as opposed to being a passive watcher,” he said. “And by virtue of the TikTok relationship, being able to interact with our IP, that really engages the younger audience in a significant way.”
He also emphasized how the vertical, fan-driven content strategy could help Disney+ subscribers explore more of the platform’s library, noting it will “allow consumers to discover other aspects of what we have on Disney+ on mobile.”
Rewarding Creators Through a New Program
Johnston also spoke about the Creative Ambassador Program, an initiative built to reward top-performing TikTok creators with greater visibility, access to exclusive events, and career development opportunities.
Johnston described the program as a way to establish “close relationships” between The Walt Disney Company and the creators contributing to this new content strategy.
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