Disney+ adds 6.3m subs in Q2

The Walt Disney Company has reported Q2 revenues increased to $22.1 billion (€20.5bn) from $21.8 billion in the prior-year quarter.

Disney’s Entertainment Direct-to-Consumer business was profitable in Q2. While Disney said it was expecting softer Entertainment DTC results in Q3 to be driven by Disney+ Hotstar, it continues to expect its combined streaming businesses to be profitable in Q4, and to be a meaningful future growth driver for the company, with further improvements in profitability in fiscal 2025.

Disney+ Core subscribers (ie excluding Disney+ Hotstar) increased by 6.3 million to 117.6 million in Q2, and Disney+ Core ARPU increased sequentially by 44 cents. US streaming serivce Hulu finished the quarter with 50.2 million subscribers. Disney+ and Hulu finished the quarter with operating income of $47 million. The two had a loss of $587 million in the Q2 2023.

Sports operating income declined slightly versus the prior year – with Disney attributing it to the timing impact of College Football Playoff games at ESPN – but it was offset by improved results at Star India. ESPN+ saw a loss of $18 million, which was considerably down than on the Q2 2023 loss of $659 million.

The Experiences division, covering theme parks and consumer products, saw a 10 per cent increase in revenue to $8.4 billion, while operating profit rose 12 per cent to around $2.3 billion.

“Our strong performance in Q2, with adjusted EPS up 30 per centcompared to the prior year, demonstrates we are delivering on our strategic priorities and building for the future,” said Bob Iger, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “Our results were driven in large part by our Experiences segment as well as our streaming business. Importantly, entertainment streaming was profitable for the quarter, and we remain on track to achieve profitability in our combined streaming businesses in Q4. Looking at our company as a whole, it’s clear that the turnaround and growth initiatives we set in motion last year have continued to yield positive results. We have a number of highly anticipated theatrical releases arriving over the next few months; our television shows are resonating with audiences and critics alike; ESPN continues to break ratings records as we further its evolution into the preeminent digital sports platform; and we are turbocharging growth in our Experiences business with a number of near- and long-term strategic investments.” Investing