ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Disney is combining the Hulu app and the Disney+ app subsequent 12 months.
- Most Hulu content material is obtainable on Disney+ already, however not all – you continue to want the Hulu app for now.
- You will nonetheless be capable of subscribe to Hulu and Disney+ as standalone providers.
In case you’re a Hulu person, you will seemingly be altering apps quickly.
Throughout right this moment’s quarterly earnings results announcement, CEO Bob Iger mentioned the corporate could be “totally integrating Hulu into Disney+,” which means the standalone Hulu app will disappear someday in 2026. Disney announced plans for a mixed Hulu and Disney+ app again in 2023, with plans to unify the 2 by “March of subsequent 12 months” (2024), however that hasn’t occurred but.
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Whereas most Hulu content material is already accessible on the Disney+ app, some is barely accessible within the Hulu app because of licensing restrictions. Moreover, content material from third-party add-ons like Max and Showtime can also be solely accessible by means of the Hulu app, so that you do nonetheless want the present Hulu app for now.
Hulu as a service is not going away. You will nonetheless be capable of purchase a standalone Hulu subscription and a standalone Disney+ subscription, but it surely’s clear the corporate is pushing bundles. Disney mentioned the Hulu + Live TV service will technically be mixed with Fubo, however each providers might be marketed and bought individually.
In the identical name, Disney additionally introduced that it deliberate to cease reporting subscriber numbers (one thing Netflix has already finished). It’s going to nonetheless announce when it reaches milestone numbers, however is not going to present common updates.
Whereas switching from one app to a different may not seem to be an enormous deal, there are seemingly some hidden ramifications to this variation. One, some customers get a free Hulu with advertisements due to their Spotify Premium subscription. Additionally, some customers get a Spotify low cost due to having a Hulu account — together with some who’ve been grandfathered in when Hulu was a free streaming service. It isn’t clear what is going to occur to these bundles; I’ve reached out for an evidence.
A brand new sports-centric streaming service that features WWE
Disney additionally plans to launch a brand new standalone sports activities streaming service that is accessible with out a cable subscription. The ESPN streaming service will launch in August for $29.99 a month, or $35.99 a month for those who bundle with Disney+ and Hulu.
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ESPN streaming will get you all content material from ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews, ESPNU, and ESPN+, plus dwell content material like Monday Night time Soccer, Sunday Night time Baseball, and School Soccer Primetime. Any sport that airs on ABC (Disney owns ABC) might be accessible too — 47,000 dwell occasions a 12 months in whole. Disney introduced right this moment that this service will even stream all WWE premium dwell occasions of their entirety, together with WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, Survivor Collection, Cash within the Financial institution, and extra.
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