Disney Contemplates Combining Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu

Could Disney+ one day include ESPN+ and Hulu? According to Disney CEO Bob Chapek, “possibly.”

On an investor call following last week’s earnings report, Chapek indicated that the company was still determining the right mix of bundles and standalone services but was open to folding its three best-known streaming services into a single offering.

• Disney currently bundles all three services together for $13.99 per month.
• Disney+ (116 million subscribers) costs $7.99 monthly, while ESPN+’s 14.9 million subscribers pay $6.99.
• Hulu (41.6 million subscribers) offers several monthly price points, from $5.99 for ad-supported membership to a $64.99 live television plan that offers NFL, NBA, NHL, and NCAA games.

“So far, [the Disney bundle has] worked really, really well,” Chapek said. “Is there an opportunity for improvement by considering something different going forward? Possibly, but we’re going to continue to learn.”

He added that “a good chunk” of Disney’s marketing focuses on the bundle and that the churn rates for the combined package “are even lower” than those of Disney’s individual streaming services.

The company already packages content from its Star network into Disney+ in Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. Chapek noted “constraints” around current rights contracts that would make merging multiple services more complicated in North America.

All in all, Disney boasts just under 174 million streaming subscribers, nearing Netflix’s 209 million. Fiscal third-quarter revenues rose 45% year-over-year to $17 billion.