Disney+ has exceeded expectations by adding 11.8 million paid subscribers in the quarter ending January 1, 2022.
This contrasts with the 2.1 million it gained in the previous quarter and led Walt Disney CEO Bob Chapek, speaking in a call accompanying the company’s latest set of results, to say the service still remains on track to reach 230-260 million paid subscribers globally by the end of fiscal 2024.
Disney+ began this year with a total of 129.8 million subscribers, or 37% more than the 94.9 million it had 12 months earlier. The total in the US and Canada grew by 18% to 42.9 million over the year, while the international total, excluding Disney+ Hotstar, increased by 40% to 41.1 million. Disney+ Hotstar, at 45.9 million, enjoyed the biggest growth (57%) in the fiscal year ending January 1.
Meanwhile, the ESPN+ subscriber total as of January 1 stood at 21.3 million, or 76% more than a year earlier. Hulu had a total of 45.3 million (+15%), of which 40.9 million (+16%) were SVOD only and 4.3 million (+8%) live TV and VOD.
Walt Disney notes that D2C revenues for the quarter ending January 1 increased 34% to $4.7 billion and operating loss increased 27% to $0.6 billion. The increase in operating loss was due to higher losses at Disney+, and to a lesser extent, ESPN+, partially offset by improved results at Hulu.
It adds that lower results at Disney+ reflected higher programming and production, marketing and technology costs, partially offset by an increase in subscription revenue. Higher subscription revenue was due to subscriber growth and increases in retail pricing. The increases in costs and subscribers reflected growth in existing markets and to a lesser extent, expansion to new markets.
ARPU for Disney+ (including Hotstar) was $4.41 in the quarter ending January 1, up 9% on a year earlier.
