Disney+ going in a radical new direction to cater for the TikTok generation

While CES 2026 announcements have mostly been good news, the latest from Disney+ leaves me concerned. It is said to be branching out into TikTok-style vertical video.

The goal of this new feed, according to Deadline, is to drive people to use the app more often. And presumably attract a younger audience.

The announcement came from CES, specifically directed at advertisers attending the event. It said that this will cover a variety of areas including sports, news and entertainment.

Erin Teague, Disney's EVP of product management, said it will contain "original short-form programming, repurposed social clips, refashioned scenes from longer-form episodic or feature titles, or a combination."

Currently any apps that use short form videos appear to be big hits with younger users. Since clips from Disney shows and movies spliced onto current social media do so well, it makes sense for Disney itself to get in on the action.

Since TikTok, Instagram Reel and YouTube Shorts are doing well with these clips, it might be time Disney takes them back.

So while this is "meeting people where they are," as Teague put it, this does feel like another app vying for attention.

Here's hoping this doesn't make the minimalism and simplicity of using Disney+ any less decent than it currently is.

Disney+ subscription: pricing and availability

The Disney+ streaming service is available to use across a whole host of devices including TVs, phones, tablets, consoles, computers and more. You will need a subscription to get access to all the Star Wars, Marvel, National Geographic, Hulu and other content.

At time of publishing a subscription is priced from £5.99 per month (with ads) going as high as £15.99 per month (ad free) for a top-end 4K stream quality.