Rita Ferro Upfront Disney
Disney opened its Upfront 2021-2022 with Cynthia Erivo performing “What the World Needs Now is Love,” which afterward was led by Rita Ferro, president of Advertising Sales of the company, who highlighted that the industry is going through “a seismic transformation”.
Ferro highlighted several pillars of Disney: the adoption of streaming where Hulu amounts to 29% of the minutes seen in this medium, about 7 billion hours a year; the storytelling; a highly connected audience -240 million in the US alone- and a technological advertising platform.
Ferro also made mention of diversity and multiculturalism, emphasizing that in this Upfront all the agreements that they reach will have a multicultural component. “44% of our audience is multicultural.”
She indicated that there will be opportunities for inclusion in all the company’s brands, becoming a strategy of 52 weeks a year. Also, they will be deploying measurement solutions to ensure impact.
Craig Erwich, president of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment announced for ABC new series such as Queens; the romantic comedy Maggie; Abbot Elementary; a new version of The Wonder Years but now from the perspective of a black family in 1968 narrated by Don Cheadle. For Hulu, he announced a new series with the Kardashian family and documentary series such as Pamela and Tommy with Lily James and Seth Rogen; The Girl From Plainville with Elle Fanning; Dopesick with Michael Keaton, and McCartney 3.2.1, with Paul McCartney debuting on July 16.
Courteney Monroe, president of Content for Nat Geo announced shows like The Hot Zone: Anthrax; Gordon Ramsay Uncharted; Brain Games On The Road; Critter Fixers; Trafficked; Sharkfest, and the new event series National Parks narrated by Garth Brooks.
Burke Magnus, ESPN Executive VP of Programming and Original Content, highlighted that the backbones of the signal are its exclusive rights and great storytelling. He highlighted the return of the NHL that now joins the NFL, NBA, and MBL leagues on the ESPN screen. Among the new docuseries: The Captain, with six episodes, about former Major League Baseball player Derek Jeter.
