Netflix may be the biggest streaming giant right now, but according to Ampere Analytics data provided to The Guardian, Disney Plus is projected to overake Netflix in as the world's biggest streaming platform in the next three years. Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph recently talked to FOX Business as he shared insight on the future of the streaming industry, telling the outlet that Disney+'s growth since its November 2019 launch, is "extremely impressive" and all other streaming companies should be "scared"of its prominence.
"I'm really impressed with what Disney has done so far. I mean, what are they, 16 months in and they've just exceeded 100 million subscribers," Randolph told FOX Business. "It's extremely impressive. And even more impressive is the velocity. At their investor day, which was not too long ago, they had 86 million. So 14 million subscribers. It took Netflix 10 years to get their first 14 million subscribers. And Disney's done it in just over two months."
Disney recently topped 100 million global subscribers, just 16 months after its launch, but Randolph said that it'll "take a while" for them to "bring those numbers up".
"The one big difference, of course, is that approximately a third of Disney subscribers are in a single country," Randolph added. "It's the hot star in India. And even if you look out at where the forecast goes three years from now, they show that Disney is going to be larger than Netflix in one country, India. But Netflix will still be larger than India in another 195 countries. So this is not quite the way it sounds in the report. And of course, fundamentally, the most important thing that Disney has to do is demonstrate that they can make money from their subscribers. You know, as we've mentioned before, that right now about a $4 average revenue per user and Netflix is just about $10."
Randolph went on to say that it's not Netflix that necessarily should be scared by Disney's prominence, but all the other streaming companies. "I mean, right now with Paramount Plus coming in a few weeks ago. Now, every single major media company is in a streaming business, and right now we're all sampling. But I promise you, there is going to be a musical chairs moment and there is not going to be chairs for everybody. And I think what consumers are going to do is have their Marie Kondo moment where they really ask themselves, is this service bringing me joy? And if it's not, they're going to dump it. And I certainly think that.. Netflix and Disney are both going to be left standing. And I wonder who else will be joining them."
It's clear that Disney+ is creeping up behind Netflix, which reported more than 200 million subscribers in late 2020. Disney owns two other major streaming services in Hulu and ESPN+, and at the end of February, Disney Plus launched Star, a new entertainment brand for adults, in non-US markets. Disney+ beneffited well from people staying at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and with a lot of exciting Marvel and Star Wars titles planned for the streaming service, there's no signs of Disney+ slowing down anytime soon.
Personally, I'm a bigger fan of Netflix's streaming service because of the larger variety of films and TV shows it currently offers. I barely use Amazon Prime, but I'm considering to subscribe to Disney+ so I can catch up on Marvel's WandaVision and The Mandalorian.
Do you think Disney Plus will overtake Netflix in just a few years? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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