Dive Brief:
- Disney unveiled a slate of new features, including a TikTok-like vertical video format, for its digital platforms, as part of the sixth annual Global Tech & Data showcase at CES, per details shared with Marketing Dive.
- The vertical video format will be used across categories and content types, including news and entertainment. Last year, Disney-owned ESPN introduced a vertical video format on its app.
- The company also introduced new creative and measurement tools, including a video generation tool that will let brands create content using their existing brand assets and guidelines.
Dive Insight:
If there was ever any lingering doubt about TikTok’s influence on entertainment and mobile media, Disney has removed it. Disney will use vertical video across categories and content types, including news and entertainment, for a “more personalized, dynamic experience that reinforces Disney+ as a must-visit daily destination,” per an announcement.
The company’s introduction of vertical video on its core entertainment platform demonstrates just how much the ways we consume content have changed, and the lengths companies will go to capture those eyeballs. A plurality (41%) of consumers consider both social media videos and streaming services to count as “watching TV,” per Deloitte Consulting’s 2025 “Digital Media Trends” report. At the same time, more than a third (35%) of consumers spend more time viewing videos on social media than streaming services. Unsurprisingly, that percentage increases among younger consumers.
Disney also introduced several new tools to make its streaming platforms more advertiser-friendly. Among them is a new video generation tool that will help advertisers create commercials using their existing brand assets and guidelines. The tool will also support versioning by audience, context and placement. Disney also introduced a new AI-powered planning tool that captures objectives, audience intent, timing and constraints.
Finally, Disney also expanded its Disney Compass measurement tool, which was introduced last year, to include a unified view of brand performance across campaigns and platforms, called Disney Brand Portal. The tool uses category benchmarks and AI-powered summaries that highlight learnings and identify new opportunities for advertisers. The tool will be connected to measurement providers including Affinity Solutions, CINT, EDO, Innovid and VideoAmp upon launch.
The company also introduced a new Disney Advertising Brand Impact Metric that brings together attention, brand health, reach, search and attribution metrics so marketers can see what’s working and understand and optimize their campaigns. The new tools demonstrate how streaming platforms are working to improve measurement as marketers push for more performative media.
“More than ever, marketers need a better bridge between brand building and performance, and data can serve as the insight layer across campaigns and tactics,” said Dana McGraw, senior vice president of data and measurement science, in a statement. “When brands can connect ad exposure to direct results, marketers gain clarity on not just what drove results – but how.”
