Disney+ has experienced remarkable growth since its launch in November 2019, reaching around 126 million global subscribers in the second quarter of 2025. The streaming service's rapid ascent is particularly noteworthy given that it took Netflix, the current market leader, about a decade to achieve similar customer numbers in a less competitive landscape. Disney's biggest streaming competitor Despite its impressive subscriber base, Disney+ faces stiff competition in the streaming market, particularly among younger viewers. As of October 2023, Netflix remained the most-watched subscription video-on-demand service among U.S. children, capturing 34 percent of the audience, with Disney+ following at 31 percent. To address profitability challenges and retain customers, Disney has implemented strategies such as introducing extra member pricing in various countries, with costs ranging from 3.58 U.S. dollars in Hong Kong to 6.67 U.S. dollars in Italy. Market adaptation In response to the evolving streaming landscape, Disney has adjusted its pricing strategy. In late 2024, the company once again increased its monthly subscription prices for Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ in the United States. This move followed significant improvements in the provider's direct-to-consumer streaming segment, with operating losses decreasing substantially between 2022 and 2024. Disney's DTC entertainment business, for example, reported an income of about 143 million U.S. dollars in 2024 after years of making losses, demonstrating that Disney's efforts to achieve profitability seemed to have paid off.

While the number of UK households subscribing to Disney+ steadily increased between 2021 and 2022, Disney's subscription-based streaming offer has recently struggled to retain customers. In the first quarter of 2025, *** million UK households subscribed to the platform, marking a decline from the previous quarter.

The Walt Disney Company announced that its sports streaming service ESPN+ had around 24.9 million U.S. subscribers at the end of its first fiscal quarter of 2025. This marks a decrease of 300,000 customers compared with the same quarter of the previous year.

Introduction

Disney+Hotstar Statistics: OTT (over-the-top) platforms have gained fame since people sought entertainment during the pandemic. OTT platforms face stiff competition from other comparable platforms, and every platform is known for its unique characteristics. Combining Disney's vast content library with Hotstar's strong foothold in the Indian market, the platform has seen remarkable growth and popularity. Among all Indian OTT platforms, Disney+Hotstar happens to be the most well-known.

There are different types of movies and Disney-related content for kids. This paper seeks to investigate Disney+Hotstar Statistics such as the features, general data, demographic-based information, data on revenue, regional-wise data, total subscribers, and the traffic received by its official website.

In the first quarter of 2025, the Walt Disney Company reported that Hulu had 53.6 million paid subscribers, up from 49.7 million in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal year. Hulu has several pricing plans to cater to varying consumer preferences, with the most basic option including ads costing 9.99 dollars per month and the priciest monthly subscription package fixed at 18.99 dollars (without ads) as of October 2024. In addition to that, many bundle options are available, including access to live TV, as well as to Disney+ and ESPN+. What is Hulu best known for? Hulu is often best known for the dystopian TV show “The Handmaid’s Tale” based on Margaret Atwood’s novel of the same name or the comedy mystery series “Only Murders in the Building,” starring Selena Gomez. The shows have received a significant amount of media attention since their releases, and were among the TV shows with the highest amount of Emmy Awards nominations in the last few years. Hulu's history Content aside, Hulu’s past dealings with other media companies have also been a frequent point of discussion. The company was founded in 2007 and its board has included American investment firms as well as representatives from stakeholders Disney, Fox, and Comcast. A lot changed in early 2019 when The Walt Disney Company acquired 21st Century Fox, a deal which generated enormous online buzz and which gave Disney a 60 percent majority stake in Hulu. Shortly afterwards, multinational conglomerate AT&T sold back its 10 percent stake to Disney. Finally, Disney announced in November 2023 to purchase Comcast's 33 percent stake in Hulu. Disney’s newest streaming service, Disney+, is available as part of a bundle including ESPN+ (for sports fans) and of course, Hulu, which will cater to more mature audiences whilst Disney+ takes care of the family-friendly content.

Netflix's global subscriber base has reached an impressive milestone, surpassing *** million paid subscribers worldwide in the fourth quarter of 2024. This marks a significant increase of nearly ** million subscribers compared to the previous quarter, solidifying Netflix's position as a dominant force in the streaming industry. Adapting to customer losses Netflix's growth has not always been consistent. During the first half of 2022, the streaming giant lost over *** million customers. In response to these losses, Netflix introduced an ad-supported tier in November of that same year. This strategic move has paid off, with the lower-cost plan attracting ** million monthly active users globally by November 2024, demonstrating Netflix's ability to adapt to changing market conditions and consumer preferences. Global expansion Netflix continues to focus on international markets, with a forecast suggesting that the Asia Pacific region is expected to see the most substantial growth in the upcoming years, potentially reaching around **** million subscribers by 2029. To correspond to the needs of the non-American target group, the company has heavily invested in international content in recent years, with Korean, Spanish, and Japanese being the most watched non-English content languages on the platform.

In 2023, the video-on-demand platform with the most subscribers in Finland was Netflix, with an estimated number of one million subscribers. Disney Plus counted with 600 thousand estimated subscribers, while HBO Max with 450 thousand.

By 2027, it is expected that the gross number of SVOD subscriptions will reach *** million in the United States. Netflix will have nearly ** million subscribers in the country alone. However, Amazon competed with Netflix for the most American subscribers and, according to the forecast, it will surpass Netflix, reaching over *** subscriptions by 2027. Meanwhile, Disney Plus, stylized as Disney+, is expected to accumulate about **** million subscriptions.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, Amazon Prime Video was the most popular subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service in the United States with a market share of ** percent, based on the users' interest in adding content to their watch lists of certain streaming platforms. Netflix followed closely with a market share of ** percent. Subscription streaming market – a money-losing business? While subscription streaming platforms increased their subscriber bases in the years 2020 and 2021 due to the measures taken during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2022 and 2023 saw services such as Netflix and Disney+ lose a substantial number of customers. Furthermore, the direct-to-consumer (DTC) businesses of large media companies are struggling to turn a profit. Paramount, for example, reported a loss of *** billion U.S. dollars for its streaming services in 2023. Streaming companies take action In order to compensate for subscriber and income losses, streaming companies implemented several strategies, such as launching more profitable ad-supported tiers, cracking down on credential sharing, laying off thousands of employees, and spending less on content. The Walt Disney Company was already able to increase DTC profits recently. Its cost-cutting measures include layoffs and savings in content spending by reducing content produced and removing TV shows and movies from its streaming services.

Media streaming, social networks and other content providers have faced challenges during the period as demand for airtime and advertising expenditures wavered. In addition, the number of cable TV subscriptions has fallen significantly, as increased subscription costs combined with better, cheaper alternatives have driven consumers to stream over traditional cable and TV. These hindrances have been offset by a boom in online video streaming and a surge in demand for media content. The online streaming boom has led to an industry-wide climb in revenue at a CAGR of 1.4% to $225.1 billion over the past five years, including an incline of 2.2% in 2025, when profit will reach 15.0%. During this period, significant consolidation has occurred, especially among the top companies in the industry. Large traditional cable and TV providers have looked to expand into the streaming realm and have done this mainly by acquiring streaming platforms to integrate into their business. Disney acquired Fox and Hulu, expanding their presence in the streaming field. Around the same time, Viacom and CBS announced a massive merger to create Viacom CBS, making this new merger another massive player across the industry. Similarly, Discovery Inc. merged with AT&T's Warner Media, which led to the emergence of their streaming service Max. Vigorous acquisition activity has led to an overall reduction in the number of enterprises operating in the industry. With more consumers choosing streaming over traditional cable, companies have been pressured to diversify their offerings. Disney’s bundling strategy with ESPN+ and Hulu and Paramount+'s significant subscriber uptick highlights the aggressive pursuit of market share. However, the emergence of ad-supported streaming services aimed at price-conscious consumers has introduced a new revenue stream that bridges the gap between advertisers and viewers. While many providers are poised to intensify their shift into the rapidly growing field of media streaming, falling cable television subscriptions will continue to weigh down the industry. Providers will look to secure further growth by acquiring or merging with additional companies and continuing industry-wide consolidation trends. Overall, the foray into digital streaming is undoubtedly a bright spot for the industry and will continue to motivate industry growth. Technological innovations like AI-driven personalized recommendations and higher-quality content delivery will enhance user experience and targeted advertising, improving revenue streams. However, regulatory scrutiny, most notably from the FTC concerning data privacy and antitrust issues, could impact future mergers and content licensing strategies. The industry will also experience a shift towards hybrid models that blend live and on-demand streaming, meeting diverse consumer needs. Over the next five years, revenue is forecast to propel forward at a CAGR of 2.4% to $253.8 billion, with profit inching upward to 15.3% in 2030.

The number of Disney+ real users in Poland fluctuated in the observed period. The highest number of RU was recorded in December 2022, reaching over *** million. In December 2024, Disney+ had more than **** million real users.

Disney Plus enjoyed significant success in terms of individual subscribers in Australia during its initial launch period, attracting nearly ************* subscribers in late 2020 and nearly equalling Amazon Prime subscriber numbers. Elsewhere, Netflix had ***** million subscribers and Foxtel had **** million. Unsurprisingly, the coronavirus pandemic boosted subscriber numbers to all services during 2020.

Multiple subscriptions becoming more popular

More and more Australian adults are subscribing to multiple video streaming services. In 2019, a survey revealed that **** million adults were subscribed to both Netflix and Stan, and a similar number had Netflix and Foxtel accounts. Industry newcomer Disney Plus was most often combined with Netflix; **** million adults had subscriptions to both services.

Netflix remains Australia’s most popular video streaming service, with ***** million households having a subscription to the service in 2019. By comparison, Foxtel (including the Kayo sports service) had **** million households subscribed, and Stan had **** million.

Video streaming consumption

Television consumption is shifting further away from traditional network television in Australia. A 2020 survey revealed that ** percent of respondents thought it was more likely that they would watch TV from a streaming service than from traditional TV channels.

Over the course of an average week in the first quarter of 2018, ** percent of Australians said they had used Netflix. This is more than double the average weekly use of Foxtel services; ** percent of respondents to the same survey said they used either Foxtel Play, Foxtel Go or Foxtel Now in an average week.

Among the leading video-on-demand providers, Amazon Prime has the highest number of titles on offer in the United Kingdom (UK) as of December 2024. In total, it offered over ****** titles, compared to Netflix’s *****. However, Netflix is the service with the most TV shows on offer, while movies is where Amazon Prime stands out with over ****** titles compared to Netflix’s ***** films. Netflix dominates the video-on-demand market Despite Amazon Prime’s large media library, Netflix has remained the better performing video-on-demand service in the United Kingdom. As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the platform had around **** million subscribers, while Amazon Prime had **** million. Having emerged in 1997 as the world’s first entertainment streaming service, Netflix has managed to stay ahead of its competitors. Today, its strength lies in its original series content, many of which have gathered worldwide acclaim. Indeed, the platform regularly dominates the ranking of popular streaming shows in the UK. Pricing and quality strategies Despite the vast content libraries, streaming services face significant challenges, and content alone may not guarantee retention. A 2024 survey revealed that rising prices was the primary reason for over ** percent of UK consumers to cancel streaming subscriptions. In fact, as competition intensifies, providers are adjusting their strategies, with plans to not only reduce content spending but also to grow their subscription fees. As the market matures, streaming platforms are likely to focus more on targeted, high-quality content rather than sheer amount to maintain their competitive edge and subscriber base.

Netflix is forecast to have close to ************* subscribers in Africa by the end of 2029, and thus, it is by far the most popular SVOD platform on the continent. Showmax is expected to be the second most popular SVOD service in Africa, with a projected number of subscribers of around *********** in 2029.

According to a survey conducted by Rakuten Insight in June 2024, Netflix was the most used subscription video on demand (SvoD) service in the Philippines, as stated by ** percent of respondents. Disney+ and Viu were also among the most used SvoD service in the country.

Since its inception in February 2025, the number of subscribers of JioHotstar has grown sixfold. Boosted by sporting events such as the Indian Premier League and the ICC T20 World Cup, to which it owns exclusive media rights, the platform's subscribers amounted to 300 million in June 2025. JioHotstar is an Indian streaming platform formed as a result of a joint venture among Reliance Industries, Viacom 18, and Walt Disney Company in 2024 that combined the JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar video streaming services.

The number of Australians with a membership to a subscription video on demand (SVoD) service has seen steady growth since 2013. According to a 2021 survey on media consumption, SVoD household penetration reached ** percent. Video streaming service subscriptions In 2019, Netflix was Australia’s most popular SVoD service, with ***** million households saying they had a subscription to the service. Foxtel, including Kayo sports, had **** million households subscribed to its service, and **** million households were subscribed to Stan. Notably, there has been an increase in the number of consumers with subscriptions to more than one SVoD service. In a recent survey, **** million consumers said they were subscribed to both Netflix and Stan. Moreover, *** million said they had accounts with both Netflix and Foxtel, and industry newcomer Disney Plus was often paired with Netflix; **** million said they had subscriptions to both services. Disney Plus and video streaming consumption Whilst in its initial launch phase, Disney Plus has seen unprecedented success in Australia. It attracted *** million subscribers during the early part of 2020, surpassing the number of both Amazon Prime and YouTube Premium subscribers. Australia’s most successful video streaming services were Netflix and Foxtel (including Kayo sports), who had **** million and **** million subscribers respectively as of February 2020. In the first quarter of 2018, Netflix proved to be the most accessed SVoD service; ** percent said they accessed the service over the course of an average week. By comparison, ** percent accessed Foxtel services and *** percent said they had accessed Stan, and just *** percent had accessed Amazon Prime.

According to an online survey conducted in Japan in November 2024, Amazon Prime Video was used by ** percent of the respondents. It was the most widely used paid video streaming service in Japan, ahead of Netflix and U-Next. The Japanese video streaming market Paid video streaming services constitute a growing market in Japan. This is reflected, for instance, by the share of people who use paid video streaming services, which increased considerably in recent years. While it took some time for the market to take off, it became increasingly contested after Netflix and Amazon Prime Video started their operations in September 2015. Disney followed with its own service in 2019. Next to these global players, a number of domestic services exist, such as U-Next, Lemino, and Wowow On-Demand. According to an estimate of the subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) market that was based on user fees, Netflix was the leading service in terms of market share. Growing influence of online media The growth of video streaming services is emblematic for current developments in the Japanese media industry. While many traditional media forms, such as broadcasting and newspapers, are stagnating or declining, the online media content market continues to grow. While on-demand video streaming services are still relatively small compared to some of the more traditional media, they constitute an attractive market with high growth potential. Netflix, for instance, invests heavily in the production of new content by cooperating with local content producers in order to gain an advantage over its competitors. The growth of the market goes hand in hand with other technological developments, such as the spread of smartphones and improved internet connections.