The streaming service Disney+ gained nearly 8 million new subscribers in the past quarter. With this, Disney’s online platform is getting away with the downturn that rival Netflix is struggling with due to the end of the shutdowns. That company recently reported its first subscriber decline since 2011.
Disney+ had 137.7 paying members at the end of the breakout fiscal second quarter, a third more than it did in the same period last year. All of Disney’s streaming platforms, which also own Hulu and the online sports channel ESPN+, have total subscribers of 205 million.
That’s close to 221.6 million Netflix subscribers. The leading film and streaming TV company lost 200,000 subscribers in the last quarter. Netflix has indicated that many trips are possible again and so streaming at home is less popular, but the competition from Disney now looks great too.
Disney+’s growth was also less robust than in the previous quarter, in part due to the end of the shutdown. However, the total number of paid subscribers surprised Wall Street analysts, who had expected an average of 134.4 million new members.
As the US lockdowns come to an end, Disney has also made a lot of money from movie theaters and theme parks. Revenue rose 23 percent year-on-year to $19.2 billion. The company then posted a net profit of 470 million euros, almost half less than the previous year due to higher taxes. Operating profit, which does not yet include taxes, rose by half thanks to the reopening of the Disney theme parks.
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