Disney teams with Netflix

Netflix Inc. subscribers will soon have access to Disney classics and new movie releases after the company reached a new multi-year licensing agreement with The Walt Disney Co. Dec. 4.

Under the agreement, Netflix will be the exclusive U.S. subscription television service for first-run, live-action and animated feature films released by The Walt Disney Studios.

New Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Studios and Disneynature films will be made available for Netflix members to watch instantly on multiple platforms starting in 2016.

The agreement also calls for direct-to-video films released by Disney to be made available on Netflix starting in 2013.

A separate multi-year agreement reached by the two companies will allow Netflix subscribers to view classic Disney films on multiple platforms. The companies did not specify when the latter agreement would take effect.

Ted Sarandos, chief content officer at Netflix, in a statement called the news “a bold leap forward for Internet television.”