Disney Sets Upfronts Week Return, Hulu Exits NewFronts

One of the early event casualties of Covid-19 last spring was the annual May upfronts week, as the pandemic forced all of the major media companies to postpone or cancel their presentations for buyers. But this year, at least one perennial upfronts week presenter—Disney—is returning to its usual position on the schedule. Disney will hold its upfront presentation on Tuesday, May 18, at 4 p.m. ET, which is the company’s traditional upfronts week time slot. But attendees will have to wait another year to return to the typical location at New York’s Lincoln Center—the event will be held virtually. However, as one tradition continues, another major one is ending: Disney’s streamer Hulu is exiting the NewFronts, and will not participate in the Interactive Advertising Bureau’s event for the first time in the NewFronts’ decade-long existence. Disney’s May presentation will be part of a three-pronged upfront approach for marketers, according to Rita Ferro, president of advertising sales and partnerships at Disney. That includes two upcoming events: the company’s first-ever tech showcase on Feb. 23, along with its annual content development presentation on March 23. Last March, Disney was forced to cancel its annual Lincoln Center presentation and rethink its upfront strategy on the fly. Instead of a single livestreamed replacement event, the company created nine separate upfront roadshow presentations for marketers. But for the 2021-22 upfront, the company had the time to devise a more thorough upfront experience with a trio of virtual events. While she wishes she could present to marketers in person, Ferro said she is a fan of virtual events “because you can make sure you have all the relevant pieces and the right format.” Three-pronged approach The first presentation will be the Disney Platform Tech Showcase on Tuesday, Feb. 23. That event will focus on the company’s investments in innovation, and unveiling solutions around data-driven precision, measurement and premium ad experiences for marketers. Jeremy Helfand, who previously headed up Hulu’s ad platforms and now leads Disney’s new Advertising Platforms team, will talk to marketers during the presentation, which will also spotlight Disney’s self-service ad manager for small and medium-sized businesses. “There’s always been this notion of, 'Disney's a great storytelling company,' but our technology and our capabilities and technology and data rival any of our competitors in this space,” said Ferro. “So we want to make sure we get that story out, before we start talking about all the great content coming.” The content portion of the conversation will occur a month later, during the Disney Platform Content Development event on Tuesday, March 23, showcasing programming across the Disney portfolio. “While we haven’t had a lot of content” because of Covid production shutdowns last year, “now we will have a bunch of content coming out,” on both linear and Hulu. In addition to previewing what’s in store for the next upfront season, Disney will also spotlight its summer slate, even though those shows will debut ahead of the upfront burying window, “because we have so much in the works and clients haven’t had a chance to see that,” Ferro said. That will lead to the virtual upfront event on Tuesday, May 18, representing Disney’s entire portfolio: ABC, ABC News, Disney Channels Worldwide, Disney Digital, ESPN Networks, ESPN+, Freeform, FX Networks, Hulu and National Geographic Networks. “We are going to put all of our eggs into this one presentation and speak to the Disney platform across all platforms and screens and experiences,” said Ferro. Farewell, NewFronts That decision means Hulu is bowing out of the NewFronts for the first time ever. A NewFronts founding partner, Hulu—which at the time was jointly owned by Disney, Fox and Comcast—had been involved in every annual event since 2012, including last year’s all-virtual presentation. While Hulu’s 2020 NewFronts plans were already underway a year ago when the streamer was further integrated into Disney (and the platform’s ad sales were moved under Ferro’s purview), the company decided to go ahead with separate upfront and NewFronts presentations that year. But during upfront negotiations, “we did one deal across the Disney platform, and that’s how clients expect to buy us,” said Ferro, adding that most of Disney's content now spans linear and streaming platforms, and its upfront messaging is about using both to help marketers “reach the full opportunity and potential of your customer base.” Hulu’s NewFronts exit comes as the IAB is looking to expand the scope of this year’s event—set for the week of May 3—to include linear television broadcasters in addition to the usual digital media publishers, streamers and platforms. Still, as Ferro noted, “we’re very obviously committed to the IAB, and all the work we do with the IAB around innovation and the streaming space.” All Disney upfront clients and marketers, as well those who attended Hulu’s NewFronts presentations, have been invited to all three events. Upfronts week normalcy? Ferro said she did not have any conversations with her upfronts week counterparts before deciding to return to Disney’s traditional spot, but she thinks others may follow suit. After all, most marketers “are back to their regular cycle” following the pandemic disruptions. Indeed, Disney’s return to upfront week comes as other media companies are also planning for a more normal upfront routine. A+E Networks has set its virtual upfront event for March 3, while WarnerMedia will hold its inaugural Kids and Family Upfront next week, on Feb. 17.

TV Upfronts

Disney Sets Upfronts Week Return With May 18 Virtual Event, Hulu Exits NewFronts

Three-pronged approach includes tech showcase and content development presentations

Jason Lynch

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Jason Lynch