The Growth of Disney+ Subscribers Internationally is a Bit More Complicated Than You Think

Are you a fan of The Mandalorian, WandaVision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, or High School Musical the Musical the Series?

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If you’re a Disney+ subscriber, then you’ve probably got a whole list of shows you watch every week or movies you love to watch on the weekends. We’ve heard a lot about Disney+ subscriber numbers over the past few months, but just what is going on with Disney+ in some other countries? Well, things are a little more complicated than you might expect.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Disney’s streaming services, Disney+ and Hotstar, had a total of 36.9 million subscribers across the Asian-Pacific region by the end of the first quarter.

Media Partners Asia (MPA) has forecasted that Disney+ subscribers could grow to 56.5 million by the end of this year in the Asian territories, as Disney+ launches in other locations in Asia. That could potentially generate $800 million in revenue!

Disney+’s direct, organic subscriber growth is reportedly most evident in markets like India or Australia, where Disney+ or Hotstar have been present the longest.

The MPA has explained that in most other markets, Disney’s streaming services have acquired customers based on partnerships with telecommunications or pay-TV operators, through the use of special bundles.

The MPA expects that the majority of Asian subscribers by the end of 2021 (about 87%) will all come from India and Southeast Asia.

But, the MPA has reduced its forecast for the growth of Disney+ Hotstar for India due to the recent wave of COVID-19 that has greatly impacted the area. This wave of COVID-19 has affected professional cricket matches, which is one of the main things that has drawn fans to the streaming service.

Previously, MPA had estimated that the total number of Disney+ Hotstar subscriptions in India would be 51 million by the end of the year. That has now been reduced to 41 million.

What about places like Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan? Disney+ isn’t expected to launch in those markets until the fourth quarter of this year, so we’ve got a ways to go.

And there are other complications Disney+ faces in Asia-Pacific. According to the MPA report cited by The Hollywood Reporter, in Indonesia, Disney+ Hotstar consumption has become focused on Marvel films and series. The report notes that Disney+ Hotstar needs stronger local content if it wants to avoid becoming a “franchise super fan platform.”

The MPA report notes that Disney+’s future in Asia-Pacific will greatly be determined by growing direct consumer relationships in key markets, while also keeping third-party partnerships, as well as releasing original productions that resonate across the region.

While Disney+ has an incredible amount of subscribers worldwide (over 100 million), it did fall short of the number of subscribers it was expected to reach recently.

Only time will tell how Disney+ continues to grow and what its future will be. We’ll be keeping a close eye on any Disney+ news and sharing that all with you!