Disney “wins over” Netflix in the battle for subscribers

Disney

Disney “wins over” Netflix in the battle for subscribers.

Disney will launch a new ad-supported streaming service in the US in December as it beats Netflix in the race for paid subscribers.

The firm reported 221.1 million subscribers across its three streaming platforms in early July.

That put it just ahead of Netflix, which has been losing customers.

But Disney warned that the loss of broadcast rights for cricket in India would reduce its subscriber growth compared to earlier forecasts.

The firm, which also owns streaming television platform Hulu and sports-focused ESPN+, said demand for its Disney+ product remained strong.

The pandemic lockdown gave a boost to streaming services like Disney, but the easing of Covid-19 restrictions doesn’t appear to be stopping it from attracting new customers.

So the company added 14.4 million Disney+ subscribers in the quarter, many of them outside the US — far more than analysts expected.