Disney Joins Hands with Warner Bros Discovery to Offer a 3-in-1 Bundled Streaming Service

• Streaming giants Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery announced that they are coming together to provide a new streaming bundle where users can access Max, Hulu, and Disney+ together.
• Prices are yet to be revealed but there will be at least two plans-one with ads and one without them.
• The duo is also planning to collaborate with Fox Corp to create a sports-centric streaming service.

Walt Disney Co. and Warner Bros. Discovery have decided to amalgamate their offerings to provide their users with a new bundle where they will be able to access Max, Disney+, and Hulu together.

The streaming bundle is expected to roll out this summer in the United States. An official release date will soon be announced by the companies.

Although the companies have not revealed a ton of details about the pricing structure, we do know that there will be at least two options: one with ads and one without. And you'll be able to purchase a plan from any of the three platforms.

This new offering will help drive incremental subscribers and much stronger retention." - JB Perrette, Warner Bros Discovery Executive

Once this collaboration goes through successfully, the duo is also expected to partner with Fox Corp to launch a new streaming service, which will be specifically designed for sports fans.

More About the Platforms

Independently, Hulu has 45.8 million subscribers and Disney+ has 117.6 million subscribers.

Interestingly, Disney+ rolled out a Hulu integration in December last year to increase viewership and engagement on both platforms, which makes this newly formed three-in-one bundle all the more convenient to provide.

On the other hand, Warner Bros. Discovery has 97.7 million subscribers across all its platforms, which include Max, HBO Max, Discovery+, as well as HBO (its premium pay-TV service).

How Will This Move Benefit the Platforms?

Netflix and Amazon Prime Videocontinue to dominate the OTT industry. No other company comes close to the number of subscribers they have and the amount of content they offer.

At the same time, new subscriber sign-ups have significantly decreased in the past year.

• In February 2024, Disney revealed that it had lost 1.3 million subscribers.
• As for Max, the platform lost about 2.5 million subscribers in 2023.

Read more: Netflix will not publish subscriber count from 2025

So, in a situation like this, it makes no sense for the companies to keep spending billions on acquiring new content when they can't even get enough people to watch it in the first place. They need a way to beat Netflix and Prime Video-that's where a bundled streaming package comes in.

When two or more platforms come together, users automatically get access to a vast range of movies and TV shows. Plus, the fact that such bundles will always be more value-for-money than having to pay for independent platforms separately becomes a massive reason for people to choose the bundle over standalone services.

Other Steps Taken by Disney to Increase Subscribers

In order to crank up its subscriber count, Disney has also planned to crackdown on password sharing-just likeNetflix had done. Simply put, this means that you will no longer be able to share you account's password with devices outside your household.'

As you might know, this move significantly increased memberships for Netflix. Andit looks like Disney is hoping for similar results.

In addition to that, Disney is also planning to introduce TV-style channels to increase engagement. They will run 24/7, showing content that the platform chooses-and users can tune in at anytime.

More Platforms Taking the Same Route

Disney and Warner Bros. aren't the only ones using the good old bundle trick' to beat the competition.

Last year, Comcast and Paramount Global were in talks for combining Paramount+ with NBC Universal's Peacock in the U.S. However, the deal fell through because Shari Redstone, Paramount's controlling shareholder, was interested in selling the company.

Then, Comcast and Charter Communications joined hands and came up with the Xumo Stream Box-a device that gives users easier access to other OTT platforms like Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, etc.

Amazon Prime has also done something similar. In addition to its own content, it also displays TV shows and movies from partner platforms like Lionsgate, Discovery+, and Eros Now. However, it's important to note that you're required to get a separate subscription for each of them.

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