The Walt Disney Company wants two of its streaming services merged.
Disney CEO Bob Iger announced during the company's latest earnings call that Disney+ and Hulu's content would be merged sometime before 2023 ends.
He also mentioned that subscription prices for Disney+ would also increase following a recent $3 addition on top of its ad-free streaming tier's monthly fee in Dec. 2022.
Disney+ Hulu Merger Merger Details
Iger mentioned in Disney's latest earnings call that the company plans to merge Disney+'s content with Hulu's to form a one-experience app sometime in 2023.
A Variety report mentioned that the one-app experience would be limited in the US and would launch by the end of 2023. Despite this upcoming experience, Disney plans to keep Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+, interestingly, as standalone options.
Iger described the move as a "logical progression" of its direct-to-consumer offers and that it will provide greater opportunities for advertisers while giving bundle subscribers access to "more robust and streamlined content." Simply put, Disney's goal in creating a one-app experience with the merging of Disney+ and Hulu's content is to serve both advertisers and subscribers, with the new app giving a "more unified streaming experience" by having flagship content from one streamer be present on the other, per The Nerd Stash.
"The advertising potential of this combined platform is incredibly exciting," Iger stated.
While Iger included ESPN+ as one of the streaming services to be merged with Disney+ and Hulu, he didn't mention any plans as to when it would happen, though Screen Rant theorizes that it wouldn't happen since its content is vastly different from the two.
Screen Rant reported that Disney combining the content offered on Hulu and Disney+ into a single streamlined app is a sensible move for Disney since it owns both streaming services. Disney managed to acquire full ownership of Hulu in May 2019, buying the remaining stakes Comcast had at the time, per Vanity Fair.
The effects of the change in ownership started kicking in when the biographical drama, "Flamin' Hot," became the first film that aired on Disney+ and Hulu on the same day.
Disney+ Price Increase
Aside from the Disney+ and Hulu merger, Iger also announced that Disney is increasing its subscription price for Disney+'s ad-free and ad-supported tiers. Although he didn't say when the increase would become effective, he did reveal that they would cost more than $11 and $8, respectively.
While Iger didn't mention why a price increase is happening, the company reported a 26% operating loss in its streaming business. According to an Engadget report, the company promised investors that the business would have a positive cash flow by the end of the 2024 fiscal year.
Whether the one-app experience and the price increase would help Disney's profitability is still a matter of debate. However, a price increase is never a good reason for subscribers to either stay or return to a streaming service, as Netflix discovered in 2022.
