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But a distinct lack of IP and franchises has stopped Netflix going much further than this; unlike Disney, it doesn’t have a huge treasure chest of Pixar or Marvel characters to build rollercoasters around. In 2022, the company announced it was looking for its own Star Wars; it hasn’t found it yet.
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But the cupboard isn’t exactly bare. In 2018, the streamer signed deals with the C.S. Lewis estate for the Narnia franchise and Roald Dahl’s estate to develop most of the novelist’s best-known books – with the notable exception of James and the Giant Peach, Danny the Champion of the World and Fantastic Mr Fox.
In 2021, Netflix acquired the entire Roald Dahl Story Company, announcing the deal would allow “the creation of a unique universe across animated and live-action films and TV, publishing, games, immersive experiences, live theatre consumer products and more”. New head of film Dan Lin – producer of Sherlock Holmes and The Lego Movie – has been vocal about wanting more IP, and experiences are part of that strategy.
“In the US, the company’s growth is now driven by getting existing subscribers to pay more – or getting freeloading users to pay for the first time – which will inevitably reach a ceiling,” explains Harrington. “Netflix needs to start building complementary businesses if it wants to keep an upward trajectory. These include gaming and advertising but also growing merchandising and experiences which, if executed, should only intensify fandom of its bigger brands and increase engagement.”
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One of the monetisation problems streaming platforms like Netflix have is in its global reach. Netflix either makes its content or buys all rights from production companies, then shows the content globally and … that’s it. In the past, studios and broadcasters have been able to sell the same piece of content many times over. Movies and TV shows are licensed overseas to a number of different buyers for a period of time rather than sold in perpetuity. After a while, they return to sender. Known as “windowing”, this means you make the show, then you sell the show or film to the same person again and again.
Indeed, in recent troubled times – COVID excepted – it’s the theme parks that Disney has relied on. In 2023, the parks and experiences division was the best-performing part of Disney’s business. It posted revenue of $32.5 billion in 2023, which was 36 per cent of the company’s total revenue but 70 per cent of its operating income. Disney’s entertainment business, including movies and TV, represented 45 per cent of revenue but just 11 per cent of operating income.
Disneyland’s Main Street Electrical Parade: their theme parks are very lucrative.Credit: Joshua Sudock
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The question is, how long will it take for Netflix to build an experiences business that can generate Disney-style revenue? Disney parks are incredibly well-oiled, iconic destinations. People see them as vacation destinations and stay longer than at rival theme parks – often a whole week or more. Many customers stay on the property in Disney hotels, eating three meals a day via dining plans and paying extra for character experiences. Pricing is structured to encourage longer trips, with entrance fees reduced for extended stays. Disney World has around 300 shops, almost all themed to where in the parks they are located, and the shopping experience is part of the destination’s appeal, offering exclusive merchandise. This is a company, after all, that has its own corporate fan club, and there are people who will visit the parks to trade pins and badges.
As the website DailyDose says enthusiastically: “Disney Pin Trading is a fun, interactive experience where Disney Guests can trade specially marked Disney pins with Cast Members and fellow Guests. Kids and adults alike can partake in the fun, collecting pins of their favourite characters, attractions, and parks!”
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos has said Netflix House is “something you might go to a couple of times a month, not just once every couple years”. The company will certainly get the real estate for a bargain price. Both of the 2025 locations are former department stores now lying empty.
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”Our real estate clients are desperate to lease out to whoever will take the space,” says Patrick O’Brian, retail research director at GlobalData. “If you get a worldwide global brand taking space, it’s very enticing. In the UK we’ve seen much smaller scale ventures like crazy golf courses take some of the old BHS and Debenhams stores that have struggled to be re-let but we haven’t seen one really successful entertainment concept come up and spread like wildfire.”
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O’Brian isn’t sure if Netflix would be guaranteed to generate footfall rather than just leech on it, however. “It depends on the mission they attract in terms of the shopper – gymnasiums taking up a large amount of space don’t really have a halo effect in malls,” he points out. “People go there with a different mission and then leave. And one of the keys to success will be to keep the offer refreshed, so that it keeps people coming back to what’s new.“
As for the future, online theme park forums are already full of ideas for Stranger Things rides and attractions: an Upside Down-themed land; an indoor coaster based on Eleven’s powers; a live show based on the Battle of Starcourt mall. Netflixland, here we come.
The Telegraph, London