Incredible numbers are being posted by Disney Plus as in the few short months since the service launched on 12th November 2019, the service has somewhere between 25 – 30 million subscribers, and that’s before it rolls out to much of Europe on 24th March.
Entertainment analyst Michael Nathanson looked at the numbers.
““From zero to where they are now is unbelievable. The company should bask in the glow of what they’ve pulled off. They didn’t play it safe. But they did the right thing for the company.”
Disney lived up to its reputation as a marketing machine through the Verizon deal and other consumer marketing efforts for Disney Plus. The campaign started in earnest with the company’s April 11, 2019, Investor Day presentation, which generated crucial advance buzz among Disney-philes. On day one, Disney Plus generated some 10 million sign-ups for a weeklong free trial. The conversion rate from free trial to paying customer will also be a key focus for investors.
Although Disney’s fiscal first quarter 2020 numbers are expected to dazzle, investors will press Disney for granular detail on the pacing of new signups, the early churn rate and viewing trends, Nathanson predicted. And industry folk are hankering for updates to Disney Plus’ programming, given the popularity of “Star Wars” standalone series “The Mandalorian” and its breakout star, Baby Yoda (officially known as The Child).
Given the strong launch in the U.S., Nathanson also wonders if Disney will speed up plans to roll out Disney Plus in other big territories. Already Disney has bumped up by a week the March launch date for Disney Plus in the U.K.
Disney’s quarterly call is this Tuesday and it will be fascinating to see what the reaction is to these massive numbers.
