Disney/Pixar's "UP" Includes Descriptive Video, But Only If You Buy It

I really have a love/hate relationship with Disney. Just two weeks ago I was telling you about the new descriptive audio offerings at Disneyland. Well now I have to tell you how Disney is one big contradiction. In the recent DVD release of Pixar's "Up" one of the features is descriptive video. As awesome as this is, it's only a feature on the DVD if you purchase it. That's right, Disney decided to make a special rental version that has all of the features including close captioning, descriptive video, and even the shorts removed from the DVD. So apparently if you're disabled and want to enjoy this film, you better want to have it as a part of your dvd library.

I'm sure you're asking yourself why Disney made this decision. According to consumerist.com, a disney representative simply said that it was a marketing decision to remove all "special features". It is unknown if there are any DVD rental companies that will be offering the DVD with the special features included, but Netflix, Blockbuster, and Red box for sure have the modified version.

There is no excuse for this, especially for those who waited for the DVD release because they have a disability. People with disabilities shouldn't have to pay extra to enjoy a movie, especially when the features were built in to make sure that the blind and deaf could better enjoy the film. I'd really like to know how this decision came to occur. It seems clear to me that Disney must not employ anyone with a disability in their marketing department, because if they did they would realize that this is likely to cause people to not buy the DVD, rather then increase sales.

I hope that this blog post and others that have been written sends a message to Disney that this kind of behavior isn't acceptable. If they really want to promote accessibility and inclusion, then do so. Don't offer accessibility and then take it away because it might effect your profit margin.