Everything We Know About Changes to Disney+

A lot of changes were announced for Disney+ and Hulu this week during The Walt Disney Company’s Q2 earnings call.

Here is a breakdown of the key changes that are about to move forward.

 

Disney+ and Hulu will Become One App

Similar to the operations of Disney+ Hotstar in foreign markets, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that Disney+ and Hulu will be combined into one app. This will be to provide a desired combination of Disney content and general entertainment.

This system merger will not interfere with Disney’s current plans to absorb Comcast’s remaining shares of Hulu by the start of 2024.

Content will be Removed from Disney+

In an effort to profit off of licensing, Iger also announced that subscribers will see content removed from Disney+. This is a first in the streaming service’s short history, as most of the Mouse House’s efforts have been focused on acquiring previously licensed content.

Before his sudden departure, former CEO Bob Chapek reported that over  $1 billion in order to terminate licensing agreements early to stock up content on Disney+ and Hulu. Now, Iger has decided to reverse that course, once again calling upon the profit potential of license distribution.

It is not clear at this time which content will be removed from Disney’s streaming services at this time.

New Disney+ Content will be Limited

As for new content, Iger reiterated that Disney will “rationalize” any new content going forward. His comments during the quartly earnings call suggests that a global optimization push on new content is being undertaken. It is still unclear how that “rationalization” will specifically come to light, but Iger hints that this rationalization could affect smaller, less profitable international markets rather than anything stateside.

Related: Iger: Disney to “Rationalize” Less Streaming Content Amid Writers Strike

Price and Ads will Increase

Unfortunately, these changes will also bring price increases and more ads integrated into Disney+. Iger announced that the ad-supported tier of Disney+ will debut in Europe this year. He also confirmed that yet another subscription price increase was also incoming. However, it is not clear how much the price increase would be.

Disney’s stock price has dropped 10% since the earnings call. 

We at Disney Fanatic will continue to update our readers on Disney news and stories as more developments come to light.