Walt Disney Co. will enter the Japanese broadcast business later this year, sources at the Japanese unit of the U.S. entertainment and media giant said Friday.
Disney may broadcast cartoons and Tokyo Disney resort commercials on Sky PerfecTV and major cable networks, possibly as early as November, the sources said.
Walt Disney Co. (Japan) Ltd. and Walt Disney Television International Japan will file an application on behalf of Walt Disney Co. in line with a broadcasting and telecommunications services law that has paved the way for foreign companies to enter Japan's broadcast sector, they said.
Subscribers to the Disney channel on Sky PerfecTV are expected to be charged around 600 yen per month.
D Wonderland Inc., a computer game software house, said in late March that it had tied up with the Japanese unit of Walt Disney and the regional phone units of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. to launch a broadband content distribution service.
The partners will offer DisneyBB on Flet's services, through which Disney-devised content will be distributed via the Flet's optical fiber and asymmetrical digital subscriber line networks run by NTT East Corp. and NTT West Corp., according to D Wonderland said.
The nationwide service will begin in July for a monthly fee of 1,000 yen, which does not include charges for access to the Flet's services. A starter kit will be available for 9,800 yen.