Disney is Taking a Less is More Approach to Sell Commercial

Walt Disney Co. does not take many approaches to sell commercials on Disney+ streaming services. Disney+ will broadcast about four minutes of commercials per hour on an ad-supported version of the platform, according to company officials.

The company also decided not to run ads during pre-school programming when a version of the service that supports ads was launched, officials said. Pre-schoolers watching Disney+, which uses their profile to support ads, won't see ads no matter what they stream, they said.

The planned four-minute hourly ad load is lower than most of Disney+'s competitors and significantly lower than what you see on traditional TV, company officials say.

Disney+ is particularly attractive to advertisers because its content is considered brand-safe, ad buyers say. Many companies have been soaking in hot water in recent years after their brand appeared near controversial content online.

Disney is announcing new advertising strategies as many major TV programmers provide networks and platforms to advertisers, leading what is called the "pre-market" where networks promote TV shows and sell ads for the next season. 

Most streaming services already offer a cheap ad support tier, as consumers have become more price-sensitive due to the proliferation of platforms.