Disney+ disables Dolby Vision and 3D in eleven EU countries

An ongoing patent dispute means that Dolby Vision and 3D are no longer missing only on Disney+ in Germany, but in several other EU countries as well.

In early February, Dolby Vision and 3D disappeared from the Disney+ app across Europe. At the time, the patent case applied only to Germany, but it was not until mid-March that Disney+ restored Dolby Vision in other EU countries.

The issue is now back across Europe. Flatpanels has received several tips from readers reporting that Dolby Vision HDR is once again unavailable through the Disney+ app on their TVs. Upon checking, we are experiencing the same issue on its own devices.


Affects multiple EU countries
In a press release this week, US company InterDigital announced that it has won a patent case before the Unified Patent Court (UPC) concerning video patents. This time, the ruling is not limited to Germany.

- "The Mannheim Local Division of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) ruled that InterDigital is entitled to an injunction over Disney's infringement of an InterDigital patent covering certain video encoding techniques related to HEVC and confirmed the validity of this patent. The UPC is a pan-European patent court which issues decisions that apply across multiple countries in the European Union (EU); here, the injunction against Disney spans 11 EU countries," InterDigital said in a press release.

Disney can appeal the ruling, but the process could be lengthy.


3D movies are also missing
3D movies are also no longer available in 3D on Disney+, as these are tied to Dolby Vision. 4K and HDR10 remain unaffected.

Disney has removed all references to Dolby Vision from its support pages in Europe. Dolby Vision remains available in North America and other regions.

Flatpanels has asked Disney for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication. The article will be updated if we hear back.

Update: Disney Nordic has sent us the following statement:

- "As a result of litigation before a European patent court, we have been required to make changes to the availability of Dolby Vision and 3D in Denmark and several neighboring countries. We are disappointed that we have had to do this, and we share our customers' frustration. Disney+ continues to support the highest-quality formats, including up to 4K UHD and HDR, and we are actively exploring options to address the recent changes to ensure that we deliver the best possible viewing experience tailored to customers' devices and subscription plans."

Amazon reached a settlement with InterDigital last week, allowing it to continue to offer Dolby Vision on Prime Video.