Disney+ starts losing subscribers for the first time ever since its inception (But why?)

Disney+, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video are the three big names when it comes to OTT platforms. However, with the rise of streaming wars, sustaining subscribers is getting pretty difficult for all the OTT services.

Compared to the likes of Apple TV+, HBO Max, Peacock, Paramount+, and other smaller streaming platforms that are trying their best to gain new subscribers, the big three are trying to find ways to retain their current number of paid customers. While Netflix and Prime Video have been doing well on that front, Disney+'s streaming service has reportedly lost millions of subscribers in recent times.

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Multiple reasons have contributed to Disney+ losing over two million subscribers

Disney's streaming service (Image via Disney)

Since its inception, Disney+ has become one of the fastest-growing streaming services. Not only did it have the movers advantage compared to other studios (besides Netflix and Amazon), but it also had the kind of price point to aggressively target the market. At $6.99 a month, Disney+'s streaming service initially proved to be budget-friendly compared to other streaming services.

However, with its constant growth, the streaming platform has slowly increased its prices. Variety even stated that in Disney+’s quarterly earnings report, the total number of subscribers fell from 164.2 million to 161.8 million in the last three months, as the streamer lost over 2.4 million subscribers.

Since Disney+'s streaming service was launched with The Mandalorian, its number of subscribers has constantly grown with quality projects being added to the streamer. However, this is the first time Disney+'s streaming service has lost so many customers.

Disney+ Hotstar lost IPL rights (Image via Disney)

There are multiple reasons why there has been a dip in the number of subscribers for the OTT platform. Stand-in CEO Bob Iger has claimed that Disney+ "only suffered a de minimis loss of subs" due to the recent price increase of the ad-free plan from $7.99 to $10.99 per month in the United States. Meanwhile, the ad-supported feature was added to the streaming service for the old $7.99/month price range.

Even besides the price increase, there are three more reasons why so many viewers unsubscribed from the Mouse’s monthly package. The first and foremost reason is that Disney+ Hotstar, which is the version of the streaming service available in India and parts of Southeast Asia, lost the streaming rights of the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket matches.

In a cricket-loving country with a population of over 1.4 billion, the IPL pulls in a lot of viewership during the months of March to May. Hence, losing the streaming rights to the IPL has caused many viewers to unsubscribe from the platform in India and Southeast Asia.

She-Hulk and Andor (Image via Disney)

Another reason for losing many subscribers is the gap between the big budget shows. MCU’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law concluded in October 2022, and Andor season 1 ended in November. Since then, Disney+'s streaming service has practically had a 3-4 month break as its next big series, The Mandalorian, will begin streaming its third season from March 1, 2023, onwards.

As a result, the break period might have led to the streaming service losing over two million subscribers. However, the third reason for the loss of subscribers is the quality of content. Last year, in particular, wasn’t a good year for the MCU as it launched multiple movies and TV shows that didn’t deliver the same quality that fans are used to. An example of this is the reception of She-Hulk among fans, which was met with criticism.

With the increase in prices and a dip in quality, Disney+ lost its luster as a premium streaming service. Hence, the drop in subscribers. Former CEO Bob Chapek had even begun to focus more on quantity rather than quality, but it was soon followed by his departure. But the return of Bob Iger has once again promised to focus more on quality, which is why it will be interesting to see how Disney's streaming service manages to bounce back in 2023!