BURBANK, Calif.—Just about 16 months after launching, Disney+ has officially surpassed 100 million global paid subscribers. Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Chapek shared the news during Disney’s virtual Annual Meeting of Shareholders on March 9.
Disney+ launched on Nov. 12, 2019. Today, it is available in 59 countries across North America, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Latin America and most recently Singapore. At the end of 2020, Disney reported that the streaming service had reached 95 million paid subscribers.
The growth of Disney+ has far exceeded expectations. Prior to the service’s launch, Digital TV Research projected it wouldn’t hit 100 million global subscribers until 2025. Now, thanks in large part to buzz-worthy content like “The Mandalorian,” “Hamilton,” “WandaVision” and Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Fox and National Geographic library content, that projection has been bested by nearly four years.
Disney+ now joins Netflix and Amazon Prime Video as streaming services that have more than 100 million global paid subscribers. Netflix reported that it surpassed 200 million subscribers in January, while Amazon has a reported global subscriber base of around 150 million.
“The enormous success of Disney+—which has now surpassed 100 million subscribers—has inspired us to be even more ambitious, and to significantly increase our investment in the development of high-quality content,” said Chapek. “In fact, we set a target of 100-plus new titles per year, and this includes Disney Animation, Disney Live Action, Marvel, Star Wars and National Geographic. Our direct-to-consumer business is the company’s top priority, and our robust pipeline of content will continue to fuel its growth.”
