Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images; Randy Holmes/Disney via Getty Images
- Disney+ and Hulu saw more than double their average cancellation rates in September.
- The churn surge came in the same month that Disney-owned ABC sidelined late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.
- It appears Kimmel supporters may have made a mark on Disney’s streaming business.
Disney saw more than double the typical number of customers cancel their Disney+ and Hulu customers in September — when subscribers threatened to quit because of Jimmy Kimmel’s brief cancellation.It appears some of those subscribers followed through on their boycott threat and canceled, according to new subscription data from research firm Antenna.
The data firm said 8% of Disney+ subscribers and 10% of Hulu customers in the US canceled in September. The services usually lose 4% to 5% of their customers a month, in line with the industry average, the data firm said.
Those subscription churn rates appear to be the highest since at least April 2023, based on Antenna’s past monthly reports.
Disney+ was dropped by 3 million US subscribers in September, while 4.1 million cancelled Hulu, Antenna told Business Insider. Those cancellation figures are more than double the averages of 1.2 million and 1.9 million, respectively, in the last three months.
A Disney spokesperson declined to comment.
It’s unclear how many Disney streaming subscribers canceled as part of a boycott. But while other streamers saw their cancellation rates tick up in September — including Apple TV, HBO Max, Paramount+, and Starz — none rose as drastically.
ABC suspended Kimmel’s show for four weekdays following pressure from broadcast affiliates and the FCC. It drew widespread criticism across from both sides of the aisle, and in response, some outraged Disney fans pledged to drop their streaming services. After a few days, Disney put “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” back on the air, and local TV stations that had sidelined the show soon followed suit.
It’s unclear how many customers Disney has since won back — or how many anti-Kimmel Disney+ and Hulu subscribers cancelled the services after the short-lived suspension was lifted.
Disney has taken recent steps to try to stay out of the so-called “culture wars.” It has updated its diversity messaging, and its new “Global Belonging Week” starting Monday doesn’t mention DEI, Business Insider reported last week.
It’s in the process of fully integrating Hulu into Disney+ to create a one-stop streaming superapp. Whether that strategy helps bring back customers who cancelled because of the Kimmel suspension remains to be seen.
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