Disney–ABC Domestic Television (doing business as Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution, and formerly named Buena Vista Television) is the in-home sales and content distribution firm of
Disney Platform Distribution, a subsidiary of
Disney Entertainment, which is a division of
The Walt Disney Company. Content distribution responsibilities include domestic
televisionsyndication, domestic pay TV, Internet and cable video-on-demand (VOD), and pay-per-view outlets.[1] Disney–ABC Domestic TV replaces the
original 20th Television since August 10, 2020, and is currently running as a syndication and distribution arm.
Background
ABC's first syndication arm, ABC Films (established in July 1953), was spun off as
Worldvision Enterprises (now
CBS Media Ventures) in March 1973 due to
fin-syn laws (which have since been repealed).
Despite having some TV shows and feature films, Disney only had two syndicated shows, The Mickey Mouse Club and The Mouse Factory, prior to the formation of this unit.[2]
History
Buena Vista Television, Inc.
Disney established a television syndication unit in 1985, with Robert Jacquemin as senior vice president of domestic television distribution. None of its animated feature films were planned to enter syndication at the time.[2] The division was incorporated as Buena Vista Television, Inc. on November 5, 1985,[3] with its first release in the first-run syndication market called Siskel & Ebert.[4] The company produced the business-oriented morning show, Today's Business, in August 1986, only to put an end to the show in April 1987, indicating that they were unable to get enough advertisers.[5] In 1990, the company offered its first game show, The Challengers, into first-run syndication.[4]
In late 1986, Buena Vista was shopping DuckTales for a 1987 debut, with a 4–6 p.m. placement and a 2.5/3.5 syndicator/station ad split.[6] In late 1990 and early 1991, after launching
The Disney Afternoon syndicated block, Buena Vista had considered starting a new one-hour morning block to start in 1992.[7]
On August 24, 1994, a reorganization of Disney took place in which
Richard H. Frank became head of a newly formed Walt Disney Television and Telecommunications, which was split from
Walt Disney Studios and included Buena Vista TV.[8]
In April 1996, due to the ongoing post Disney–
Capital Cities/ABC Inc. merger realignment and the retirement of its president, Walt Disney Television and Telecommunications' divisions were reassigned to other groups. Therefore, Buena Vista TV, as a part of Walt Disney Television International, was transferred to
Disney–ABC Television Group.[9]
In February 1997, Buena Vista began development on the
Comedy Central original daytime game show Win Ben Stein's Money, presided over by actor, financial planner, motivator and author Ben Stein. The series debuted July 27, 1997 on Comedy Central; and Jimmy Kimmel was named co-host and quizmaster opposite Stein himself.
In March 2007,
Starz Inc. sued Buena Vista TV for breaching their agreement by allowing films to be available online through
Apple Inc.'s
iTunes Store and other outlets. The introduction of the
Apple TV device forced Starz to file suit, which hinged on the "contractual definition of 'television'" and whether complete TV exclusivity was granted, as Starz then had a secondary distribution deal with
Netflix.[10]
Disney–ABC Domestic Television
In May 2007, The Walt Disney Company announced plans to semi-retire the use of the
Buena Vista brand in favor of focusing on the three core brands of
Disney,
ABC, and
ESPN instead.[11] As a result, Buena Vista Television was rebranded as Disney–ABC Domestic Television (DADT).[10] Buena Vista TV converted to a limited liability business form on April 10, 2009.[3][12]
By July 2008, Disney–ABC Domestic TV signed additional carriage agreements with
Vudu and
CinemaNow, which was then added to the Starz lawsuit. On December 2, 2008, Disney–ABC Domestic TV and Starz Entertainment settled their online distribution lawsuit with the terms undisclosed.[10]