Disney+ adds 7 million subscribers in Q4

Disney+ has added nearly 7 million core subscribers in the fourth quarter, announced The Walt Disney Company in its earnings for the fourth quarter and full year ended September 30 2023. Key streaming content in the quarter included theatrical titles Elemental, Little Mermaid and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3., original series Ahsoka and the Korean original series Moving.
The company expects that its combined streaming businesses will reach profitability in Q4 of FY24, although progress may not look linear from quarter to quarter. "Our results this quarter reflect the significant progress we’ve made over the past year,” said Robert A. Iger, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “While we still have work to do, these efforts have allowed us to move beyond this period of fixing andbegin building our businesses again. We have a solid foundation of creative excellence and innovation built over the past century, which has only been reinforced by the important restructuring and cost efficiency work we’ve done this year, and we’re on track to achieve roughly $7.5 billion in cost reductions. Combined with our portfolio of valuable businesses, brands and assets – and the way we manage them together – Disney has a strong hand that differentiates us from others in our industry.
“As we look forward, there are four key building opportunities that will be central to our success: achieving significant and sustained profitability in our streaming business, building ESPN into the preeminent digital sports platform, improving the output and economics of our film studios, and turbocharging growth in our parks and experiences business. We have already made considerable advancements in these four areas and will continue to move forward with a sense of purpose and urgency, and I’m bullish about the opportunities we have before us to create lasting growth and increase shareholder value.”
Iger noted that more than 50% of new U.S. subscribers in the fourth quarter chose the ad-supported Disney+ product.
“We have the best advertiser technology in the streaming business globally, and we have just introduced new tools that will make this an even more attractive platform for advertisers, much as we’ve done with Hulu,” he said.
Speaking of Hulu, Iger said the company remains “on track to roll out a more unified one-app experience domestically, making extensive general entertainment content available to bundle subscribers via Disney+.”

He mentioned that the company will launch a beta version for bundle subscribers in December, to give “parents time to set up profiles and parental controls that work best for their families ahead of the official launch in early spring 2024.”

“Now that we have realigned our pricing and marketing strategies, focused aggressively on getting the technology right, merged our creative and distribution teams, and restored creative excellence as our singular motivating priority with the content we create, we are bullish about the future of our streaming business,” Iger said. “And as you consider the components and the future of that business, just imagine the opportunities that a further combined Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN streaming experience could offer us as a company and our consumers.”

Another core building opportunity for Disney is “taking ESPN, which is already the world’s leading sports brand, and turning it into the preeminent digital sports platform, allowing us to reach fans in compelling new ways and fully integrating key features into our primary ESPN offering.”

“We are already moving quickly down this path, and we are exploring strategic partnerships to help advance our efforts through marketing, technology, distribution, and additional content,” Iger said. “As we continue to develop our streaming business, the continued strength of ESPN, relative to the backdrop of notable linear industry declines, demonstrates the value of sports and the power of the ESPN brand.”