Bob Chapek, CEO of the Walt Disney Company and former head of Walt Disney Parks and Experiences, speaks during a media preview of the D23 Expo 2019 in Anaheim, California, Aug. 22, 2019.
Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg via Getty Images
SDisney‘s streaming service Disney+ continues to gain subscribers. On Thursday, the company revealed that the platform now has 86.8 million subscribers during its annual investor day. That’s up from the 73 million that the company reported at the end of its fiscal fourth quarter.
Shares of the company rose 3% on the news.
As of Dec. 2, the company also has 38.8 million Hulu subscribers and 11.5 million ESPN+ subscribers.
Rebecca Campbell, Disney’s head of international operations and direct-to-consumer, said the launch in Latin America was a strong success for the company and Disney+ will launch in Eastern Europe, South Korea and Hong Kong in 2021.
The company also announced that it had struck a deal with Comcast to bring Disney+ to the cable company’s set top boxes and platforms.
The entertainment giant’s stock had a record close of $154.69 Thursday, just ahead of the company’s annual investor event, in which it is slated to divulge its plans for 2021 and beyond. Disney shares also hit an intraday all-time high of $155.34 on Thursday.
On the heels of rival Warner Bros. announcing that it will release 17 films on HBO Max and in theaters on the same day next year, analysts and investors are keen to see how Disney will maneuver through the uncertainty still poised by a global pandemic.
Kareem Daniel, head of the company’s new media and entertainment distribution group, said that theatrical release help establish franchises. Something Disney has done well in the last decade with blockbusters from Marvel and Star Wars.
Daniel revealed that Disney+ will become home to 10 Marvel series, 10 Star Wars series, 15 Disney live-action, Disney Animation, and Pixar series and 15 Disney live action, Disney Animation, and Pixar films.
The company will also release the animated feature “Raya and the Last Dragon” on premium video on-demand through Disney+ and in theaters at the same time.
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Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.
