The Walt Disney Company has struck a new agreement with RAI to bring a selection of the broadcaster’s programming to Disney+ in Italy, including next-day availability for selected titles.
The deal will see shows including Belve and The Floor – Ne rimarrà solo uno made available to Disney+ subscribers from the day after their broadcast on Rai Due, marking a further step in Disney+’s push into near-linear catch-up distribution.
Disney+ will also add a library of RAI content, including Braccialetti rossi, Mina Settembre, L’amica geniale, Un passo dal cielo, Màkari and Il Collegio, alongside titles already available on the platform such as Don Matteo, Doc – Nelle Tue Mani and Il Commissario Ricciardi. The programmes will be grouped within a dedicated RAI collection on the service.
Karl Holmes, General Manager, Disney+ EMEA, said: “This collaboration with Rai will bring Disney+ customers in Italy an even broader selection of incredibly iconic local shows. Rai has a deep connection with viewers, an extraordinary decades-long heritage of high-quality storytelling, and we are proud to bring them to our audience on Disney+. Building on over 40 years of Disney and Rai working alongside each other in Italy, this initiative also aligns with our approach to working with free-to-air broadcasters across Europe, helping them bring their stories to wider audiences while giving Disney+ customers more extraordinary local entertainment and more ways to enjoy the shows they love.”
The agreement reinforces Disney+’s growing strategy of working with free-to-air broadcasters across Europe. The company already has partnerships in place with RTVE and ITVX, as well as collaborations with Atresmedia in Spain, ARD and ZDF in Germany, and SIC in Portugal.
