Disney to phase out standalone Hulu app in 2026 and stop disclosing Disney+ subs
The Walt Disney Company will stop disclosing subscriber numbers for Disney+ and Hulu at the beginning of fiscal 2026, in addition to phasing out the standalone Hulu app next year as it is integrated within Disney+ in the US.
Of the decision to cease subscriber reporting, which mirrors the move made by Netflix earlier this year, Disney said the metric has “become less meaningful to evaluating the performance of our businesses.”
While the Hulu app is being integrated into Disney+ in America, the long-running streaming brand will gain a higher profile outside the US, with Disney revealing plans to rebrand its general entertainment brand Star, which is a tile within Disney+, under the Hulu name. That change will become effective in the fall.
The shifting strategy around Hulu comes after Disney paid around US$9bn to buy out Comcast’s one-third stake in the streamer. The deal, which was the subject of arbitration over the final cost, closed over the past couple of months.
Disney CEO Bob Iger said integrating Hulu into Disney+ in the US would create a better consumer experience, lower churn, “deliver efficiencies,” enable sales teams to sell advertising more effectively, and potentially give it the ability to raise costs.
The various revelations came as Disney reported its third-quarter earnings on Wednesday, with Disney+ adding 1.8 million global subs to reach 127.8 million overall, with North American subs remaining flat at 57.8 million and international subs growing by 1.7 million to 69.9 million.
Hulu, meanwhile, added around 800,000 subscribers in the US, with the SVoD-only tier growing by 900,000 members and its Live TV + SVoD tier losing around 100,000.
In its entertainment segment, which includes linear networks, direct-to-consumer (D2C) and content sales/licensing, revenue was up 1% to US$10.7bn while operating income was down 15% to US$1.02bn.
Within that, D2C revenue grew 6% to US$6.18bn while linear networks fell 15% to US$2.27bn and content sales/licensing was up 7% to US$2.26bn. In terms of operating income, D2C grew to US$346m versus a loss of US$19m a year ago, while linear networks fell 28% to US$697m and content sales/licensing posted a loss of US$21m versus income of US$254m last year.
The day prior to Disney’s earnings report, it announced a major deal with the National Football League (NFL). Through the pact, Disney sold a 10% stake in its sports network ESPN in return for acquiring the pay TV channel NFL Network and other NFL media assets.
In the third quarter, ESPN revenue was up 1% to US$4.31bn (US$3.93bn domestically; US$379m internationally) while operating overall ESPN income was down 7% to US$1.01bn.
Investors were seemingly frosty on the ESPN-NFL deal, however, as Disney’s stock price dropped around 5% when the market opened. The stock did recover slightly throughout the day, though shares were still down around 3.5% at US$114.45 per share at press time.
Elsewhere, Disney revealed ESPN has inked a five-year deal with World Wrestling Entertainment for the exclusive US rights to premium events including WrestleMania and Royal Rumble. A report from the Wall Street Journal said the deal was worth around US$1.6bn over the course of the five years.
