Disney has commenced the process for fully integrating Hulu into the Disney Plus streaming app, and while that’s underway, CEO Bob Iger sees potential in artificial intelligence use on the platform. During the Walt Disney Company’s fourth-quarter earnings call on Thursday, he discussed how the unified app can serve as a “portal” for all of Disney’s offerings by leveraging AI technology.
“There’s clearly an opportunity for commerce. There’s an opportunity to use it as an engagement engine for people who want to go to our theme parks, want to stay in our hotels, who want to enjoy our cruises, our cruise ships,” said Iger. “And obviously, there’s a huge opportunity for games.”
Pointing to the company’s partnership with Epic Games, Iger noted that while many of their collaborative projects will live on Epic Games’ platform, the deal between the two companies “gives us an opportunity to integrate a number of game-like features into Disney Plus.” Such a move would put the streamer on a path similar to Netflix, which already offers mobile gaming and is set to roll out video games on TVs.
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Iger shared that Disney has been having “productive” conversations with AI companies in the interest of boosting customer engagement while protecting its intellectual property. That includes AI tools that enhance the subscriber experience on its streaming platform.
Additionally, the CEO discussed how Disney will use AI on the streaming service for the benefit of fans. “The other thing that we’re really excited about — that AI is going to give us the ability to do — is to provide users of Disney Plus with a much more engaged experience, including the ability for them to create user-generated content and to consume user-generated content, mostly short form from others.”
Does this mean TikTok-style videos are coming to the platform, or features like Netflix’s Moments? Subscribers will have to wait and see, but Disney is optimistic about the strides it’s making with AI tech.
