And that is because sports are culture, they’re live, they happen simultaneously, there’s a way to experience it that’s communal in terms of how you do it on social at the same time that you’re seeing the game live, how you see the enhancements around the conversation. And I feel like you got that from that presentation. And we started with sports, which is unique and different for us, and also that we’re signing some of the biggest sports talent in the world when you think of Serena Williams. That was a moment. Where Serena: In The Arena is going to be such an important piece for us, and she is my favorite athlete of all time. So I was as thrilled as anyone in the audience to have her there with us.
You also talked about Disney’s tech and reach.
The scale and reach of our platform is unmatched in the marketplace. When you think of the scale and reach of our streaming platforms, I know everyone’s putting out stats of their monthly active users, but we have over 100 million monthly active users in the U.S. And the scale that we deliver on those audiences, and the technology that underpins that portfolio of streaming services is unrivaled in the marketplace. And so I wanted to make sure clients understood that, and that’s where the interoperability was so important because the ability for them to buy direct or to leverage any of our technology partners to really be able to buy in real-time, whether it was guarantees or biddable in the marketplace, all of that is enabled by a tech and data stack that allows you to leverage it in the way you want to.
And, by the way, we haven’t even talked about how you had 100 Samurai sword-fighting through the crowd at one point for FX’s Shogun.
Oh, my God. That was something that the team who worked on that show was really excited about. I hadn’t actually seen it until the rehearsal the day before. It was more beautiful than I ever imagined it was going to look, and it was a stunning way to almost end the show because it was such a moment. But it just speaks to our storytellers’ love to innovate around great content, but then bring it to life, and that was a different way to create that experience than a video. The video was great. Don’t get me wrong. But how great was seeing those performers live across the aisles and experience that?
What’s been the feedback you’ve been hearing?
All of the key messaging in terms of what we presented on stage, I’ve heard back differently from different parties. Everything resonates a little bit differently. Some people love the sports stuff. Some people told me too much sports. Some people said, “Oh my God, your data capabilities are exactly what I’ve been looking for.” So there was a piece for everybody and ultimately everybody was able to take out of that presentation what they wanted, which is why sometimes they’re like, “Oh, these presentations—not this year, but some years—tend to be very long.” Yes. Because you want to make sure that everything that you have available to a broad base of marketers—think of the amount of marketers we work with on an annual basis—they have seen something in that show that resonates.
In terms of sports, as a Cavs fan, I loved seeing Donovan Mitchell. You also had Serena, Angel Reese, the Mannings, Damar Hamlin. Where would you even cut back?
Every one of those sports stars. When Serena came out, you heard the gasp. When Damar Hamlin came out—I saw it on the teleprompter in the back—everybody was standing and happy. How do you pick any of those guys to take away? The women from women’s sports, women’s basketball, give me a break. There’s not one I can say we would’ve taken out that one. None of them. They were all there with a purpose.