Disney+ launches Verts short-form video feed in the U.S.

Disney+ is starting to roll out Verts, a new short-form video feed, to U.S. users on its mobile app. First announced in January, the feature is designed to increase daily engagement and drive discovery across the streaming platform’s catalog. Users can access the feed through a dedicated icon in the app’s navigation bar. As they swipe through the vertical clips, they can add shows and movies directly to their watchlists or jump straight into watching the full-length content.

The rollout follows early testing of the feature in August on both Disney+ and ESPN. According to Disney, those initial tests showed that Verts successfully drove additional engagement. The company attributes this performance to the recommendation engine powering the feed, which personalizes the content shown to each user. In a blog post, the company wrote, “With the latest streaming hits and an incredible catalog spanning more than 100 years of storytelling, we’re making it easier for fans to discover what to watch next.” Disney also noted that the feed offers a fast way to explore its catalog from the moment users open the app, presenting the content in a modern format designed for mobile discovery.

With this launch, Disney+ is adopting a product format popularized by social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, which have set the standard for short-form vertical video. It also follows similar moves by streaming competitors. Netflix launched a vertical feed last year that allows users to scroll through clips of its original titles. By integrating these quick clips, streaming services are targeting younger, mobile-first users who are accustomed to consuming short-form content on their phones, hoping to hook their interest and transition them into watching long-form movies and television shows.

While Verts is launching as a tool to showcase existing clips from the Disney+ catalog, the platform plans to expand its scope. The company stated that the feed will eventually feature content from creators that reflects its fandoms, alongside other storytelling formats, content types, and personalized experiences. This transition from strictly catalog-based clips to creator-driven content represents a broader effort to merge traditional streaming with social media dynamics.

Why it matters

Streaming platforms are increasingly adopting short-form, vertical video formats to capture the attention of younger, mobile-first audiences. By serving quick, algorithmically recommended clips, services like Disney+ and Netflix aim to convert casual mobile scrolling into long-form viewing of their existing content libraries.