Brits, it’s time to rejoice! Because the news is finally here – Disney Plus users will be able to stream The Simpsons in the UK.
Disney tweeted that 600 of The Simpsons’ 670 episodes will be available to stream for Disney Plus users. Which is nearly every episode, if not every episode. The Simpsons will apparently stay in Sky co-exclusive for new seasons, including the back catalog and the older seasons will be shared between Sky and Disney Plus.
Disney Plus is going through absolute hell to acquire the licensing of its varied array of shows on the platform. Although Disney does own the rights to stream The Simpsons in the United States, because of its acquisition of 21st Century Fox, those rights did not extend overseas.
On the other hand, 21st Century Fox and Disney sold off Sky, the UK satellite provider, to Comcast in 2018. Now since Sky had secured the rights of The Simpsons previously, those rights were transferred to Comcast. This sale was a turning point for Comcast, who got entry into some of Europe’s biggest markets like Britain, Ireland, Germany, Austria, and Italy. Sky, however, struck a multiyear deal with Disney using which Sky will bring Disney Plus to its set-top boxes. Previously, Netflix was also integrated into Sky Q set-top boxes.
However, negotiations are nothing new for Disney. In order to get Star Wars: The Force Awakens to Disney Plus, before it was launched, the company worked with Starz on a deal advertising its competitor’s streaming service, in a one-time promotion. Disney Plus is also trying to acquire the rights of as many Marvel titles as possible as well. As a result, Disney went from previously announcing under 10 Marvel movies to having nearly all 23 on the service by its launch.
There is one catch here though. Apparently, the aspect ratio is incorrect for The Simpsons in the United States and the company still hasn’t resolved the issue. So, the question remains as to whether this little problem will be fixed by March 24.