The fall was not good at Disney’s streaming ambition. Disney + added only 2.1 million customers in the fourth quarter, giving it a total of 118.1 million customers. It is in line with the estimated company that has been cautious (in the low one-digit millions “) and 60 percent more customers than the previous year, but far below what some analysts expect. CNBC noted that StreetAccount estimates 9.4 million new users of this quarter.
Direct-to-consumer-oriented Disney-oriented Division also lost $ 630 million (versus $ 374 million per year earlier) partly due to extra expenses for production, marketing and “technology costs.” This is expected because the service is developing, but they suggest Disney + has not been positively clean to Disney two years after the launch. During the income call, the head of the company Bob Chapek was still convinced that the company would regage the customer’s target (more than 230 million users on September 2024) and generate profits.
The media giant has warned “headwinds.” Even though at first did not explain the problem, we will note that Disney + has a relatively quiet summer for the show, with what kind of series if …? and monsters at work carry the burden. The company streamed two blockbuster films, black widows and forest cruises, but the original film was not a strong point.
Things look brighter for autumn. Disney + streaming Shang-chi on November 12, launched performances such as Hawkeye and the Book of Boba Fett, and developed into countries such as South Korea. All of that can increase customers and guidance. The problem is whether there are enough content and expansion enough to restore Disney + to form – especially when the company returns to the prime theater-first film.
It’s not the only long-term plan. Chapek teases the prospect of Metaverse Disney which will involve the company’s Charcters and meld the physical and virtual world. However, the CEO emphasizes that it is a long-term goal and does not share the timeline or other technical details. For now, this is more an attempt to fight Facebook’s Meta Rebranding than a real project.