Disney to Offer Vintage TV Series Online

NEW YORK, March 7: The Walt Disney Company will
begin making its classic television series available on the Internet, according
to remarks that the company’s president and CEO, Robert A. Iger, made to shareholders at an annual
meeting yesterday.

“In the near future,
you’ll see more of that product available on
Disney.com, either for free or through some sort of subscription,” commented
Iger, according to Bloomberg News.
“Providing physical goods on DVD is tougher and tougher these days because
shelf space is limited.”

Iger did not say which shows Disney would provide
online. His remarks follow CBS’s and NBC’s
announcement last month that they would put advertiser-supported
episodes of older TV series online. CBS will make shows like MacGyver and Star Trek available on CBS.com and across the 300 websites
that make up the CBS Audience Network. Meanwhile, NBC said that it would offer
streaming of retro shows like Miami Vice and Kojak on the
Internet.

Disney has
been expanding its web revenue by selling programs from ABC and the Disney
Channel on Apple’s iTunes Store and offering ad-supported episodes online. The
company also bought Club Penguin, an
online social network for children, last August.

—By Irene Lew