Disney is making a lot of moves recently to make its streaming services profitable. Just this week, Disney announced plans to raise the price of Disney+, Hulu, Hulu + Live TV, and ESPN+. Now Bob Iger Disney’s CEO Bob Iger says that they will be making some changes to Disney+ internationally that could see Disney+ shut down in some countries.
During Disney’s earnings call this week, Bob Iger was asked about Disney’s plans for Disney+ international. Here is what Disney+ had to say about this:
We actually have been looking at multiple markets around the world with an eye toward prioritizing those that are going to help us turn this business into a profitable business. What that basically means is there are some markets that we will invest less in local programming but still maintain the service. There are some markets that we may not have a service at all. And there are others that we’ll consider, I’ll call it, high-potential markets where we’ll invest nicely for local programming, marketing and basically full-service content in those markets.
Basically, what I’m saying is not all markets are created equal. And in terms of our march to profitability, one of the ways we believe we’re going to do that is by creating priorities internationally.
You can read the full transcript HERE.
This is big news if you live outside of the United States. For some, this will mean less original content, and for others, this will mean they could lose Disney+ altogether.
In the past, Disney would sell rights to its content in different countries. It could be Disney is looking for ways to become more profitable by selling its shows to larger streaming services in unprofitable areas. Cutting back on original content for other countries could also help it reduce its losses but still offer the service.
This all comes as Disney is losing money on streaming. This week Disney reported that its direct-to-consumer business posted an operating loss of $512 million, an improvement over the $1.06 billion it lost a year ago in the fiscal third quarter. Disney has said it hopes to make Disney+ profitable soon. Reports have suggested that Disney+ would be profitable in 2024 or 2025. Though Bob Iger has said, he is working hard to make Disney+ profitable as soon as possible.
At this time, Disney has not said what countries it is considering shutting down or cutting back in.