The Walt Disney Company has lowered its subscriber guidance for Hotstar, its over-the-top (OTT) video streaming service in India and other Asian countries, to 80 million by the end of FY2024, as Indian streaming rights after the loss. Premier League Online. The platform had earlier estimated a user base of 70-100 million.
This will bring the overall subscription to Disney+Globally declined to 215-245 million over the same period as compared to previous guidance of 230-260 million. Overall, Hotstar added 8 million subscribers in the April to June quarter, The Walt Disney Company said.
In a statement announcing June quarter earnings. also company name coffee with karan As one of its most popular shows Disney+ Hotstar in India.
In total, Disney+ added 14.4 million subscribers globally in the April-June quarter. The company said that Hotstar will continue to contribute 60-70% of the total subscriber base in the times to come. Disney+ Hotstar is present in India and other Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, with 58.4 million subscribers at the end of the quarter, while overall Disney+ subscribers crossed the 150 million mark worldwide. The company said that the average monthly revenue per subscriber for Disney+ Hotstar increased from $0.78 to $1.20, as advertising revenue per subscriber is higher.
“We are updating customer guidance for Disney+ Hotstar to 80 million by the end of fiscal year 2024. We intend to refine this goal over time as customer visibility in India becomes clear once the ICC and BCCI cricket rights sale process is complete. We have recently made the disciplined decision not to proceed with the digital rights of the Indian Premier League and we will evaluate these rights with the same discipline,” Walt Disney Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy said during the earnings call. Told. The company is confident that Disney+ will achieve profitability in fiscal year 2024 as it offers tentpole original content releases, the delivery of premium general entertainment, international local originals and the upcoming launch of its ad-supported tier, as well as a new pricing structure. reaches a steady state. US, McCarthy said.
Disney CEO Bob Chapek said the company is excited to continue offering IPL to its linear customers in India, which has growth potential for its portfolio of more than 70 channels that account for 90% of pay cable and TV channels in the region. Satellite TV reaches homes. “Pay TV distribution in India remains a strong business, with projected GDP growth expected to fuel advertising and consumer spending. In fact, India is one of the only markets in which we are launching new linear channels,” Chapek said during the earnings call.
Sure enough, several analysts had predicted that Hotstar could lose up to 50% of its paid subscribers as the IPL moves to the Reliance-owned digital platform. Reliance Industries-owned Viacom18 recently acquired the digital streaming rights of IPL for Rs. 23,758 crore for 2023-27. However, the Walt Disney-owned service is making a conscious effort to increase its entertainment content, including buying big-ticket movies and bringing in fresh web originals, to prevent customers from leaving the platform.
It is increasing its slate of South Indian films with Kamal Haasan’s Tamil hit Vikram premiered last month. It also announced a slate of web shows, such as the third season of the crime thriller AryaStarring Sushmita Sen and criminal justice Featuring Pankaj Tripathi, and a show titled YouTuber Bhuvan Bam latest news, among others. its chat show coffee with karan Consistently featured in the weekly list of top five OTT offerings curated by media consulting firm Ormax, with the previous episode garnering 5.8 million views. In addition to direct-to-digital releases such as good luck jerryMedia analysts said Hotstar will also rely on its international origins, which includes those from the Marvel universe, which have been dubbed into multiple languages to woo the younger audience.
“Hotstar has the advantage of a huge international movie catalog from Disney including Marvel, with which there is always an opportunity for dubbing. In the coming months, it will also go aggressive on its (Indian) native slate, which will increase the overall cost of production in the industry,” Karan Taurani, Senior Vice President, Elara Capital Ltd, had told Mint in an earlier interview.
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