Verizon Customers to Get Year of Disney+ for Free

All unlimited wireless data and new Internet subscribers will get access to the new streaming service, launching Nov. 12, to reward their loyalty.

Disney and Verizon on Tuesday unveiled a deal to give the phone giant's wireless and Internet customers a year of Disney+ for free from Nov. 12.

The offer of 12 months of Disney+ on Verizon will apply to the phone giant's wireless unlimited customers and new Fios Internet and 5G home Internet customers. Set to launch Nov. 12, the Disney+ streamer will provide movies and shows from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic and more.

The free-year offer, besides rewarding Verizon wireless and Internet customers for loyalty, also promises Disney potentially millions in new customers for Disney+ after the first year of viewing.

Disney+ is set to release more than 25 original series and 10 original movies and documentaries, including The Mandalorian, from executive producer Jon Favreau, and Lady and the Tramp, a retelling of the 1955 animated classic.

"Giving Verizon customers an unprecedented offer and access to Disney+ on the platform of their choice is yet another example of our commitment to provide the best premium content available through key partnerships on behalf of our customers,” said Verizon Chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg in a statement.

Disney is challenging rival SVOD players by bankrolling new original series for Disney+ and by pricing the service below Netflix. Shares in Netflix fell by 2.4 percent to $271.50 in early morning trading on news of Verizon bundling Disney+ with its wireless and Internet hardware.

Verizon competitor AT&T owns WarnerMedia, which is set to launch its own streaming service HBO Max. And Apple is offering customers who buy a new device a year of Apple TV+ for free after that streaming service launches Nov. 1.

"The launch of Disney+ kicks off a new era of streaming for The Walt Disney Company, bringing nearly a century’s worth of content from our iconic studios to consumers directly,” added Kevin Mayer, chairman, direct-to-consumer and international at The Walt Disney Company in his own statement.