Disney’s streaming service, Disney+, has gone through lots of changes over the past few years, with new shows and movies, subscription price increases, and special features. Now, even MORE new things are coming SOON!

Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, has said that his number one priority is to improve Disney’s streaming services, including Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+. He has been working on strategies to make the company’s streaming services profitable with the overarching goal of having Disney+ become profitable by the end of fiscal year 2024. To help the company achieve this goal, there are a couple of big changes coming to Disney+.

We noticed several Disney+ changes in 2023, including the beta launch of combining Hulu with Disney+ and the removal of the “Groupwatch” feature. But what could be in store in the future? It may only be the beginning of 2024, but we’ve already got a pretty good idea of some upcoming features and partnerships.

Gateway Shop and Shop the Stream

In late 2023, Disney teased a new feature coming to Disney+, and we recently learned more about the update at the Fourth Annual Tech & Data Showcase at CES.

Developers at Disney have been working on creating shopping and gaming experiences that double as interactive ads. The project is being called “Gateway Shop” and “Shop the Stream.” Essentially, Disney wants users to be able to see a product in the show or movie they’re watching and immediately purchase it using a second screen (such as a phone or laptop if you’re streaming your show on a television).

Gateway Shop is supposed to allow viewers to “access personalized offers to purchase from a retailer without leaving the viewing environment.” Viewers may receive a push notification or email when a product pops up in their show, encouraging them to shop for that item online.

A beta program has already been launched for this new shopping ad format.

That’s not the only update potentially coming to Disney+’s advertising format, though. Disney is also working on a project called “Disney’s Magic Words,” which utilizes new technology that “allows Disney to analyze scenes and visuals across their expansive library, to capture a mood or moment, to help advertisers personalize their messaging specifically around that emotion.” So you may soon see ads that are specifically created or chosen based on the scene in the movie you’re watching!

Apple Vision Pro

Another big change coming up is that Disney+ is part of a new product: Apple Vision Pro! This new product is coming out on February 2nd, 2024, with the whole Disney+ library available from day one.

Apple Vision Pro is Apple’s new mixed-reality headset, which blends augmented and virtual reality. When users wear the headset, they’ll be able to see virtual images overlaid on live video of the real world. So you’ll see screens projected in front of you while still being able to see what’s actually going on in real life.

You can watch Disney+ shows and movies using Apple Vision Pro, but there are also a couple of cool, immersive features coming out. The first is “Disney+ Environments,” which “magically transform users’ spaces into landscapes from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars.” Basically, you’ll choose an environment, and it’ll show up all around you, so you’ll feel like you’re part of that scene.

Four environments will be available when the Apple Vision Pro headsets come out: “the Disney+ Theater, inspired by the historic El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood; the Scare Floor from Pixar’s Monsters Inc.; Marvel’s Avengers Tower overlooking downtown Manhattan; and the cockpit of Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder, facing a binary sunset on the planet Tatooine from the Star Wars galaxy.”

You can stream movies and TV shows while those environments are turned on, but keep in mind that the environments themselves don’t change to reflect the movie — they’re more for the vibes and atmosphere (so it’s not like you can be sitting in the middle of the action of the show you’re watching). The streaming part still takes place on a “screen.”

Apple Vision Pro headsets will also allow viewers to see some Disney+ movies in 3D!

Disney+ movies with the 3D option include Avatar: The Way of Water, Avengers: Endgame, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Elemental, and Encanto, although more titles will be announced at a later date.

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