ZDF Studios, the commercial arm of German broadcaster ZDF, has struck a multi-year licensing agreement with Disney+.
Starting tomorrow, Disney’s streaming subscribers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland will gain access to a massive trove of TV shows and movies from ZDF Studios at no extra cost.
Kidscreen has confirmed that this curated content collection will include select kids & family titles. The lineup will be continually updated and should include as many as 3,000 films and TV episodes by the end of 2025. Looking ahead, Disney+ plans to add brand-new seasons of some shows a few months after they’ve launched on ZDF’s linear channels and streaming platforms.
This deal means more eyeballs for ZDF Studios’ programming and a stronger local content offering for Disney’s streamer.
But the partnership is also a part of a broader industry trend this year that has seen streaming giants strike big distribution deals with broadcasters in Europe—starting with a buzzy pact between Netflix France and TF1 in June, and followed closely by a similar tie-up between Prime Video and France Télévisions. Disney+ also has had a content-sharing agreement in place with ITV in the UK since July.