[EXCLUSIVE] Disney executives pursue happily ever after with Korea

The Korea JoongAng Daily sat down with executives from Disney and asked about the recent global restructuring, the rumors regarding the reduction of business of Disney+ in Korea and what strategy the company is taking with Disney+ domestically...

Left, Soyoun Kim, managing director of the Walt Disney Company Korea, and right, Carol Choi, executive vice president of original content strategy for the Asia Pacific at the Walt Disney Company [WALT DISNEY COMPANY KOREA]

Disney is making some major changes to its global workforce, and rumors about the multi-entertainment company making cuts to its Korean content development team have permeated the industry.

But Walt Disney Company Korea explained in an exclusive interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily that the company's restructuring was aimed at “long-term sustained growth and profitability” and that the rumors regarding slashing the local content development team are “absolutely not true.”

Carol Choi, executive vice president of original content strategy for the Asia Pacific at Disney, said that because the Disney brand is associated with so many things — theme parks, Pixar and Marvel studios, home entertainment and family-friendly content, to name a few — it is taking time for the multi-entertainment company’s streaming service Disney+ to find its place in Korea.

“The value of our brand is an asset, but frankly there is also a part where it differs from market to market because there is a set perception of what Disney stands for,” Choi said during the interview at the Walt Disney Company Korea office in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on Friday. “So it actually takes us time to educate the public on what Disney+ is.”

Choi, along with Soyoun Kim, managing director at Walt Disney Company Korea, stressed that the many images and content associated with Disney are precisely why it takes time for the company to market the streaming service Disney+ for what it is.

That said, Disney+, which launched a year and a half ago on Nov. 12, 2021 and saw 590,000 new users on its first day, is currently ranked fifth in the Korean streaming service industry with 2.16 million users as of January this year, according to Mobile Index. This is only one-tenth of the industry’s top player, Netflix, which has 12.57 million users.

But Disney’s executives were not fazed by these numbers. Rather, Kim and Choi were confident that Disney+’s strength is quality over quantity, and that with their step-by-step approach of marketing the streaming service beyond the public’s scattered perception of what the Disney brand stands for, Disney can offer customers content worth watching.

The Korea JoongAng Daily sat down with Kim and Choi and asked about the recent global restructuring of Disney, the rumors regarding the reduction of business of Disney+ in Korea and what strategy the company is taking with Disney+ domestically.

Main poster for ″Moving,″ a Disney+ original series set for release on the streaming service on Aug. 9. Disney reportedly invested 50 billion won into making ″Moving.″ [WALT DISNEY COMPANY KOREA]

Q. Disney has in recent months tightened its businesses across the globe, with cuts in a billion-dollar project in Florida, postponing Marvel films releases and more. Is Disney facing a crisis? A. Kim: I would not say that we are facing a crisis. The recent global strategic restructuring is for long-term sustained growth and profitability. Amid the global shifts in entertainment content and curation, companies need to take a more disciplined approach. Similar to many companies in the media and entertainment industry, this is a time of transformation and change for our business, our industry and the broader economy. The media and entertainment industry is undergoing key shifts globally as audiences shift their content consumption from linear to streaming, and as content preferences continue to evolve in different ways. Many of these changes will strengthen our standing and reinforce the quality of our content, experience and position for long-term growth and success.

Choi: The local reports in Korea of us pulling out local content couldn’t be farther from the truth. There are content cuts going around, but the fact that we are maintaining a commitment of investments in Korea shows that our senior leadership [is committed], and the actual performance of our data warrants that we continue our presence and investments in the local content in Korea.

Disney+ has remained around fifth or sixth place among streaming services in Korea. What do you see as the reason behind Disney+’s lackluster performance? Kim: We do not see our position at present as lackluster, really. It has been a year and a half since Disney+’s launch, and you could say that this is a very short period of time. Other platforms took four to five years to build up the kind of user base we have now. We also launched during the pandemic, which was a period with a kind of momentum for the streaming industry, and we have made significant investments and churned out more than 20 original productions on Disney+.

Choi: I think that people have high expectations regarding Disney, and they expect us to be number one. But we were the last to enter [the streaming service] market, and there is a first-mover advantage for services like Netflix. There is also a heavy usage of local content among Korean consumers. So we want to stay focused and find our place because our biggest strength is our world-class brands. We are very confident that we will get there and find our place eventually.

A scene from ″Soundtrack #2,″ a Disney+ original series set to be released at the end of this year. [WALT DISNEY COMPANY KOREA]

At Netflix — CEO Ted Sarandos also mentioned this in his visit to Korea last week — there is a philosophy regarding content development that “the most local will succeed globally.” What, then, is Disney’s content philosophy? Kim: We have three pillars for our content philosophy — creative excellence in storytelling, digital innovation to directly deliver content to consumers, and authentic connections to really move people with stories. Our mission is to entertain and enrich the lives of people around the world with exceptional storytelling and experiences. Local content anchored in quality storytelling has the power to connect global audiences.

What are the most important factors that you look for when developing original content locally? Kim: We look at the story itself, and the “travelability” — the potential for that story to deliver globally — and whether the content is fitting for the Disney brand. Regarding the last factor, I would like to elaborate: There needs to be a thorough review for stories that are too violent, political, religious or stresses negative aspects to fit with the Disney brand.

Choi: We do carry with us, I would say, a bigger sense of responsibility with the content we create. We need to be responsible for people who trust our brand, and that’s a tricky part, because for general entertainment content there should be an edge, but sometimes maybe we are policing ourselves. To describe our brand in one sentence, I would say “Disney is special entertainment with heart.” We truly value stories that really touch people, that connect with people, and we focus on strong storytelling really bringing the best to global and local audiences.

Main poster for the Disney+ original series ″Big Bet,″ which was released on the streaming service this year, becoming the most-watched Korean original on a streaming service for the first week of release. [WALT DISNEY COMPANY KOREA]

Disney invested 20 billion won [$15.4 million] in the Disney+ original series “Big Bet,” and 50 billion won in “Moving.” What was the rationale behind these huge investments — what did you see that would appeal to audiences? Kim: It all has to do with the story and the strong cast of producers and actors behind the scenes. With “Big Bet,” there was veteran actor Choi Min-sik who was making a comeback to the small screen for the first time in more than 20 years, and we had a lot of faith in that. I also think that Korean audiences have very high standards. We see original local content as having to resonate with local audiences first, so the local team inside Disney Korea evaluates the candidate titles, then hands it over to the Asia Pacific team, then the global Disney team. The important thing is the story, so we use content with a strong IP already, such as webtoons, manhwa [comics] and novels.

Choi: We believe that the content must first resonate locally and be a success in its country of origin. So there is an internal team that does the initial selection. In terms of criteria, I think it obviously starts with a good story, then that gives us confidence if it comes from an established IP because there’s already a fan base for the story. There are also passion projects from local creators that we look at. We appreciate the opportunity to give back to the creative community.

Main poster for the Disney+ documentary ″SUGA: Road to D-Day,″ released on Disney+ in April this year. Disney+ announced Tuesday that another documentary surrounding the boy band BTS, ″BTS Monuments: Beyond The Star,″ is in their lineup for the second half of this year. [WALT DISNEY COMPANY KOREA]

There was a local media report that Disney+ is pulling its local content business from Korea, which you have shot down as false, and you said the local content development team is working as usual and all plans for original content will be carried out forthwith. What can you tell us about the lineup from Disney+ up till the first half of next year? Kim: We have a number of originals lined up for the end of this year and the first half of next year. There is “Soundtrack #2,” “Moving,” “The Worst of Evil,” “Vigilante,” and documentaries on boy bands NCT, BTS and Tomorrow X Together. We also have more titles in the works, which we hope to share with the press as soon as we are ready.

Choi: We will also hopefully be able to release some new shows that we have just greenlit. We can’t say now, because we are working through some paperwork, but we will definitely have more to announce hopefully within the month.

Disney+ users often complain of chunky subtitles and discomfort with the app's user interface. Can we anticipate any upgrades in this regard? Kim: We were aware internally that this may become an issue when we first launched Disney+. We believe that a lot has been improved since then, and we work with a lot of translators to keep improving the quality of the subtitles. We think a bit more time is needed until we can perfect the user experience in that regard. I also think that it is difficult because Koreans are so tech savvy, and I can tell you that the Korean office gives the most headaches to the Disney headquarters because we keep asking for all these updates and upgrades.

Choi: I think the way Korean viewers consume content is very different and very diverse. So when we first launched, people complained that there was no fast-forwarding function in the app. Some of our filmmakers would not allow that.

A scene from ″The Worst of Evil,″ a Disney+ original series set to be released in the second half of this year. [WALT DISNEY COMPANY KOREA]

Netflix has teased the release of over 30 Korean original series this year, and Disney+ has released 13 so far. Can we expect more Korean originals from Disney+ in the future? Choi: I think, out of all the kinds of metric, we never compare ourselves by volume. We are about bringing the best stories, and our content offering is very different. If you look at the box office, five out of the top 10 box office hits in Korea of all time are all Disney titles, and those are streaming on Disney+. So yes, from a sheer number comparison we do not have as many titles, that's a fact. But we never said we were going to be chasing numbers.

What is Disney+’s overall strategy for increasing subscribers in Korea? Kim: We have a phase-by-phase strategy. First is changing the brand image that people have of Disney, and getting it out there that there are all these different kinds of content that Disney has to offer. Then we let the public and users know that there are different genres and content to watch on Disney+. After that, we select and concentrate on different target audiences. Because Disney+ is one of the Walt Disney Company’s businesses, we can synergize with other sectors such as studios, direct to consumer products and games. We could create a base upon which to attract subscribers.

Is the strategy for gaining more subscribers in Korea different from those for other Asia Pacific countries? Choi: I think there are always some slight differences. For example, in Japan, we have more touch points because there’s a Disney theme park. But building the brand, building people’s understanding of what is the best content that fits their taste and then leveraging all the touch points that are available to them, is similar.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]