Antenna
If the Max-Hulu-Disney+ bundle works as designed, subscribers will stick around throughout the year instead of canceling when the new season of their favorite shows ends, and churn rates should fall.
That hasn’t happened so far, though there may be a reason for that.
Disney+ had a 3.9% churn rate in August, according to Antenna, which is well below the industry’s weighted average churn rate of 5.2% but in line with where it’s been since the spring.
In August, Hulu’s cancellation rate rose to its highest level since January, and Max’s churn rate jumped to its highest mark since November. Such changes could always be seasonal patterns, though a closer look suggests that there’s another explanation.
When taken in the context of Antenna’s other data, it looks like some Hulu and Max customers are canceling their subscriptions so they can subscribe to the Max-Hulu-Disney+ bundle without paying twice. That would explain why all three services’ subscriber counts rose in August, despite what initially seems like discouraging churn data.
And although WBD and Disney would prefer that their customers pay full price for their streamers, switching to the bundle could be better in the long run. Average revenue per subscriber may take a hit, but the revenue that does come in should be more dependable.
The Max-Hulu-Disney+ bundle is one of several streaming packages that media giants have conjured up. Comcast put Peacock with fellow streamers Netflix and Apple TV+ at a cheaper rate, and Disney has long offered its own bundles of Disney+ and Hulu, and bundles with sports streamer ESPN+.
Streaming bundles aren’t going anywhere — especially if they’re as successful as WBD and Disney’s appears to be so far.