Disney Has Added a New Streaming Bundle. Was It Needed?

Disney+ now stands as a focal point for Walt Disney’s (NYSE:DIS) financial future, which means that both the company and its shareholders depend on the platform to find their footing.

However, over the last couple of months, it has been struggling to keep up with expectations. The latest quarter alone is already considered as one of its most disappointing. Luckily, this news was not taken lightly by the company.

So, what did Disney do to fix things? Well, they just added a new streaming bundle.

An extra streaming service is sure to bring more subscribers, right?

Starting next month, the subscription fee for Hulu + Live TV will be increasing by $5. And this higher price tag will now be granting users access to Disney+ and ESPN+. 

Of course, this can be an excellent area of opportunity, especially for users who only had a subscription to the former. Currently, by paying $8 on top of your subscription fee, you can get access to all three services at once. 

In comparison, this new course of action is a bargain. But here’s the thing. What about the Hulu + Live TV subscribers who only wanted that service to begin with?

Best case scenario, this change will let them know of Disney+ and ESPN+’s quality. Maybe to a point at which it’ll convince them of the extra $5. This would also be adding millions of long-term subscribers to both platforms.

Worst case scenario, they’ll take this chance to cancel their subscription. Think about it. A selling point of streaming has always been the fact that it’s cheaper than paid TV. At roughly $70 a month, that advantage seems to have faded away.

Given that price tag, even the slightest $5 increase can come off as unappealing. And since these streaming services work on monthly renewals, it is not that complicated to just let go of it all.

Our opinion? Disney is now playing with a “high-risk, high-reward” sort of strategy. For some, the risk might be too high. But for others, the rewards could be even better.

As of today, we have no natural way of predicting which conclusion will take place. For those interested, we recommend keeping a close eye on the company for the time being. But don’t invest yet. Wait until this strategy starts proving itself.