Disney won’t share Disney+ viewership numbers

Disney+ original The Mandalorian

Disney’s Netflix competitor has finally launched, but the mouse house won’t follow the market leading streamer in publicly sharing viewership numbers for its original series and movies. 

Netflix, while previously being cagey about viewer numbers, earlier this year pledged to be more transparent following criticism.

Now, according to The Verge, content and development teams at Disney+ have held internal conversations on the topic of sharing metrics. The report claims that the teams have come to the conclusion that there is little reason to share metrics with the public, though creative talent will receive some form of ratings.

The main reason behind the decision is that Disney is not beholden to any advertisers and therefore there is no need to partner with a company like Nielsen. The report says that putting numbers in the public realm would just put more focus on each individual performance rather than the service as a whole.

Disney is not on its own in not wanting to disclose numbers though. In July, Amazon also restated its position that viewer numbers are off the table with Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke saying: “We agree that it’s not a strategy for us. We know what the numbers are.”

In a similar vein, the decision of Disney makes a certain amount of success. The company will have certain internal targets for different titles, and falling short or surpassing those will affect the editorial direction for the platform – decisions that would be likely made more difficult if the figures were publicised. 

Apple also has declined to share figures from its recently launched Apple TV+ premium streamer.