Rita Ferro: Last News

Disney said it is expanding its “Magic Words” advertising feature, introduced last year, to live programming.

Disney Advertising says the company’s streaming platforms collectively racked up an average of 157 monthly active users globally (and 112 million domestic) over the past six months.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Mickey Mouse still has some pull on Madison Ave. Walt Disney Co. said it was able to secure a higher level of ad commitments in the 2024 “upfront” ad sales market, noting its volume of ad deals was up 5%.

Family Guy was one of the biggest stars of the 2024 upfronts, prominently featured at two different presentations – Fox and Disney. Seth MacFarlane’s animated hit helped open Fox’s event and then was part of a Disney skit featuring an animated version of the company’s ad chief Rita Ferro making a sales pitch while hanging out with Peter Griffin and his dog, Brian.

There’s a new slate of Marvel shows coming to Disney+ soon.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor LAS VEGAS – The Walt Disney Co. showcased its investments in cutting-edge advertising technology on Wednesday at the Consumer Electronics Show, with top executives talking up the company’s enhanced ablity to serve marketers across linear and streaming platforms around the world. “2023 was Disney’s biggest year in our history for investments in ad technology, including theglobal expansion of Disney+ with ads,” said Rita Ferro, Disney’s president of global advertising, told the crowd at the Cosmpolitan hotel.

Disney convened its fourth annual Tech and Data Showcase for advertisers at CES in Las Vegas on Wednesday, kicking it off with affirmation from CEO Bob Iger.

William Earl administrator Variety has added additional speakers and panels to its lineup for its 2024 Entertainment Summit at CES on Jan. 10 at the Aria.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Advertisers have eyed the Disney+ streaming hub as a place where they might tuck a promotional message alongside the binge-watch of a Marvel series, or, potentially “Phineas & Ferb.” Soon, however, Madison Avenue may have some other opportunities to consider. Disney is mulling the launch of shopping and gaming experiences on the streaming outlet, with which advertisers could get involved, according to Rita Ferro, president of Disney Advertising Sales. “The world of advertising experiences on AVOD is an important place to be involved in,” Ferro tells Variety, hinting that a new presentation Disney has slated for Las Vegas on Jan.

William Earl The Variety Entertainment Summit returns to CES on Jan. 10 at the Aria featuring a day of panels and keynote conversations.

Walt Disney CFO Christine McCarthy nudged investors to discard a few narratives that emerged from the latest earnings: that Disney parks growth may be unsustainable and that the company is shedding subscribers and slashing streaming content.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Disney has pegged total cash content spending at around $30 billion for this year — but the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike may drive that down, CFO Christine McCarthy said. “If you haven’t noticed we’re in the middle of a writers strike,” McCarthy said, speaking Wednesday at MoffettNathanson’s Technology, Media and Telecom Conference in New York. The WGA walkout may reduce Disney’s cash spending on content for the balance of the year, she said. At the MoffettNathanson conference, MCarthy appeared alongside Disney president of ad sales Rita Ferro. The two Disney execs spoke a day after the media conglom’s upfront presentation in the Big Apple to ad buyers and brands — which was noticeably light on scripted fare, given the writers strike. Marvel’s Kevin Feige previewed upcoming Disney+ series “Secret Invasion,” featuring Samuel L. Jackson and Don Cheadle, and announced premiere dates for “Loki” Season 2 and “Hawkeye” spinoff “Echo.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Disney’s annual upfront presentation leaned heavily on the company’s non-scripted programming, opening with nearly an hour of focus on ESPN and its sports offerings. The emphasis on live events, of course, comes as the writers strike continues and is expected to impact the fall TV season. In fact, around 100 Writers Guild members and other union supporters marched outside the Javits Center on Tuesday to remind Disney they are still looking for a deal with the company and the other studios. Among those seen on the picket line: Zach Cherry and Michael Emerson. Inside the Javits, sports and news stars from within Disney were out in force, while reality personalities like Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Jesse Palmer and Ryan Seacrest made appearances as well. Even WABC-TV New York anchors Sade Baderinwa and Bill Ritter got some time onstage.

Rita Ferro, Disney’s ad sales and partnerships chief, urged media buyers at the company’s New York upfront Tuesday to “lean into all aspects of diversity” with their marketing commitments.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Plenty of money will be spent on TV ads during this year’s “upfront” — but probably not enough to fuel the economics of all the nation’s big media conglomerates. TV executives and media buyers usually can’t agree on much at this time of year, when U.S. TV networks try to sell the bulk of their advertising inventory in advance of their next cycle of programming. Buyers and CMOs insist TV advertising prices are too high, while TV sales honchos demand a premium for ads that are seen by more people all at once than commercials accompanying a random binge-watch or a YouTube influencer’s streamcast. In 2023, however, both types of hagglers are in agreement: Madison Avenue will greet the industry’s annual ad-sales session not with open wallets, but with tighter purse-strings.

Even without a once-in-a-generation strike or a Twitter bombshell, next week would already pose a challenge to media companies making their annual upfront pitches to ad buyers in New York.

Disney Advertising has sold all inventory for Sunday night’s Oscar telecast on ABC, but with pricing slightly down from 2022 levels.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor To a movie actor, the Oscar statue is worth its weight in gold. To Madison Avenue? Well, maybe a little less. Disney has declared sell-out of the approximately 60 to 70 commercial slots it sells in each year’s Oscars broadcast on ABC, a little more than 48 hours before the Sunday broadcast. The company sought $1.6M to $2.1M for a 30-second spot, according to a person familiar with the matter, a slightly lower range than in the past, potentially owing to the economy, or the event’s ratings declines in recent years. In 2022, Disney asked for between $1.7 million and $2.2 million for a 30-second ad, according to media buyers and other executives familiar with last year’s negotiations.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorDisney has set pricing and date for the U.S. launch of the version of Disney+ with ads, while also hiking the monthly price of the Disney+ tier with no ads. It’s also going to raise rates for Hulu — both ad-supported and ad-free versions — and introduce new Disney Bundle options.Disney+ Basic, which is the name of the plan with ads, will launch Dec.

Disney has wrapped its upfront advertising sales process, collecting a record $9 billion — 40% of it in streaming and digital.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThe Walt Disney Company said it notched more commitments from advertisers in TV’s annual “upfront” market than last year, citing Madison Avenue’s interest in both sports and streaming content, echoing a sentiment heard from other TV giants as well.The owner of ABC and Disney+ said it notched around $9 billion in advance commitments from advertisers across its portfolio, which also includes FX, Hulu, Freeform and National Geographic. During the upfront, U.S.