Disney+ crosses 60.5 million subscribers, announces new streaming platform under Star brand

Disney+ streaming service which launched in November last year has reached a subscriber base of more than 60.5 million. The new update was revealed by Disney’s CEO Bob Chapek during the company’s latest earnings call.

Earlier this April, Disney announced its streaming service crossed 50 million subscribers globally. It reported 54.5 million subscribers as of May 4. This also includes users from Disney+ Hotstar in India. Chapek in the earnings call, added that the subscriber growth rate for Disney+ is “far exceeding our initial projections for the service”.

The biggest release so far on Disney+ is Hamilton which launched on July 4. Mulan will be its next major title will be Mulan which will debut on September 4 as the live-action remake will skip a theatrical release. Mulan will however be available as a premium title priced at $29.99 ( ₹2,300 approx).

Chapek also announced plans of launching a new streaming platform under the Star brand name. Disney acquired 21st Century Fox Inc back in 2018 and thereby bringing Star India, Fox Star Studios and Hotstar under its umbrella. The new service under Star will be a general entertainment streaming platform which will launch next year overseas.

There aren’t many details but the streaming platform will showcase content from ABC Studios, Fox Television, FX, Freeform, 20th Century Studios and Searchlight. There’s no word on when exactly it will launch and how much the service will cost. Disney currently offers Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ streaming services.