Disney+ downgrades its image quality in Europe – Bye 4K and HDR10

Disney removes 4K and HDR10 support from Disney+ amid patent litigation

Disney has confirmed that it has once again downgraded the image quality of its Disney+ streaming service in Europe. Flat Panels HD has reported that the service no longer supports 4K and HDR10 content playback in Europe. This follows a move earlier this year that removed Dolby Vision and 3D support from the service.

As it stands, Disney+ no longer offers the premium tier features it advertises. Why? The answer is recent patent litigation. InterDigital, a US company, took Disney to the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and secured an injunction. This injunction prevents Disney from using InterDigital’s patents. Specifically, it covers some of the video encoding techniques related to HEVC”. The injunction impacts Disney in 11 EU countries.

Following a recent court ruling affecting the technology we use to deliver 4K UHD and HDR, we have temporarily removed support for 4K UHD and HDR on Disney+. We are disappointed and share our customers’ frustration. We are working hard to restore support as quickly as possible.”

– The Walt Disney Company Nordic & Baltic to Flatpanels

Right now, Disney+ Premium subscribers lack the tier’s top features, 4K and HDR10 support. Alongside a lack of Dolby Vision and 3D support, Disney+ Premium no longer offers most of its premium features. Without these features, the only major benefit Disney+ Premium offers is 4-device streaming in affected countries.

Amazon has recently settled with InterDigital, allowing its Prime Video streaming service to deliver 4K and HDR video content as normal. While Disney claims it is working to re-enable 4K and HDR streaming, it is currently unclear how it will achieve this.

You can join the discussion on Disney removing 4K and HDR streaming from several European countries on the OC3D Forums.