Disney+ could hit 7.6 million in UK at launch

Up to 7.6 million Brits could sign up for Disney+ when it launches in the UK on March 24.

The streamer earlier this week revealed that it had reached 28.6 million subscribers across five markets since its November 2019 launch.

Now, according to a new study of UK adults by consultant Goldmedia, the service has the potential for a rapid start in the country. The survey estimates that 59% of Brits have heard of the service, with 35% saying that they intend on signing up for Disney+ when it launches. As many as 10% of respondents said that they would cancel another service in favour of the Disney streamer.

The report found that Brits want to spend no more than £17 per month on OTT services, though Netflix is not likely to be on the chopping block.

Only 2% said that they would leave Netflix for Disney+, while Now TV (9.7%) and Amazon Prime Video (7%) are in greater danger.

The report also notes that password sharing – which has long been a problem for the industry – will become even more prevalent as a greater number of streamers enter the market. According to the report, 15.8% of users want to make more frequent use of this option in the future.

While exclusive content is definitely a selling point for consumers, 8.5% of the survey’s respondents said that they will revert to streaming illegally more often if the content they want to watch is not available on the services they have already subscribed to.

Dr. Florian Kerkau, managing director of Goldmedia Research, said: “New streaming offers make the overall market more attractive. This will also be reflected in a strong increase in usage. In addition to Disney+, we expect further leading companies to enter the market in 2020. That will make streaming even more successful overall. We continue to follow these developments very closely with our analysis platform VOD-Ratings.com as the independent voice in the market in many European countries.”