It may seem incredible, given Netflix has been active for 13 years with thousands of hours of content, but Barclays estimate that Disney Plus is already worth $108 billion dollars, which is 69% of the value of streaming giant Netflix, worth an estimated $144bn.
Barclays estimated the value of the streaming services (Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+) by calculating an enterprise value for the core business of Disney, and then subtracting that estimate from the company’s current total enterprise value of roughly $320 billion. Enterprise value is a measure that combines market cap with short- and long-term debt.
Barclays pegs Disney’s core business (movie studio, parks, etc) at $213 billion. That leaves Disney’s direct-to-consumer streaming businesses worth around $107 billion to $108 billion.
Disney+ debuted in November, gaining more than 10 million subscribers on its first day. As of October, Netflix had 158 million subscribers globally and more than 60 million in the United States.
Rosenblatt Securities analyst Bernie McTernan said last week that Disney+ will reach 25 million subscribers by the end of the first quarter. Disney has set a target of 60 million to 90 million subscribers globally by the end of its 2024 fiscal year.
