Disney+, the popular video-on-demand streaming service has gained 60.5 million subscribers as of Monday i.e., on 3rd August 2020. Disney Plus is the subsidiary of Walt Disney, one of the most popular American entertainment conglomerates. Earlier this week, the company has disclosed it’s fiscal 3rd-quarter results. Disney hadn’t even anticipated the rapid development of its video streaming service in a minimal span.
At first, the company estimated that it’s streaming service would gain subscribers ranging between 60 million and 90 million in 5 years after it’s official launch. But, it’s an overwhelming response that it has crossed 60.5 million subscribers in less than 8 months. It means the service has already surpassed the minimum end of the company’s prediction.
Bob Chapek, the Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company has officially shared the latest figures on Tuesday. After sharing the results, he said that the progress is ‘far exceeding our initial projections for the service.’ The CEO further said, ‘The global reach of our full portfolio of direct-to-consumer services now exceeds an astounding 100 million paid subscriptions — a significant milestone and a reaffirmation of our [direct-to-consumer] strategy, which we view as key to the future growth of our company.’
Global Expansion of Disney Plus Service
The globally prevalent company has launched Disney+ in November 2019. Earlier, the company has disclosed the number of subscribers that Disney Plus has acquired in April. By that month, the streaming service has exceeded 50 million subscribers. It has become possible for the service to witness rapid growth because of the collaboration with Hotstar in India. Originally, the Disney Plus service was launched in November 2019 in the United States.
Further, it has expanded the streaming services across various international markets such as Japan, India, and Western Europe at the beginning of 2020. Disney Plus linked up with the existing Hotstar service on 3rd April and launched the duo in India. With the rapid rise in Disney Plus subscribers, the stock market of Disney has soared to more than 10 percent on Wednesday. This hasty growth has enhanced the stock value to more than $21 billion to the market capitalization of the entertainment conglomerate. All the investors of Disney worldwide have rejoiced the news as Disney Plus has managed to captivate more than 60 million subscribers in the first 9 months after the origin.
Hamilton’s Impact on Disney Plus’ Overall Subscriber Base
Hamilton, a popular Broadway musical was released on 3rd July on Disney+ service. This has become possible for the company as the maximum number of people remained at home due to the closure of various entertainment sources. In recent times, the live theater recording of various shows such as Hamilton, Black is King have been added. It is another reason for the service to grab the maximum attention of the public. Mulan is all set to make it’s debut on Disney+ streaming service rather than releasing in cinemas.
Disney has a total of three streaming services as it’s subsidiary. Dinsey Plus, ESPN Plus, and Hulu are the three subsidiary video streaming services offered by Disney. Out of the three, Disney+ has gained the maximum number of subscribers. Combining the total number of subscribers including Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN Plus streaming services, Disney has more than 100 million subscribers. By 27th June 2020, ESPN Plus has acquired 8.5 million subscribers while Hulu had gained 35.5 million subscribers in the US.
Comparatively, Netflix is a significant subscription-based video streaming service globally with more than 192 million subscribers across the world. With a plethora of surprising events and films being released on these popular streaming services, Disney has been entertaining all its subscribers. The continued postponement in the theatrical releases across the world has become a plus point to the Disney Plus service.
From 4th September 2020, the subscribers can enjoy streaming Mulan through Disney Plus for just $30. The subscribers in the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and several countries in Western Europe can enjoy streaming Mulan on Disney+ service. In some of the places that don’t have Disney Plus will be released across various theaters. Disney Plus streams almost every film and show produced by Disney on its popular video streaming service.
During the pandemic, Disney Plus had released several anticipating movies such as Frozen 2, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and provided utmost entertainment to the subscribers. These movies were released a few months earlier than scheduled. Further, Disney has started releasing new movies like Hamilton.
The annual revenue of Disney has declined due to the closure of Disney theme parks cinemas and other outlets amid the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the lower revenue, the company has covered its loss through the Disney Plus streaming service. Disney+ has turned out to become the company’s partial fence against the perilous pandemic. Get to know the latest updates about various online streaming services on this website.