Disney+ Cuts Prices, Sets Premiere Date for 'Elemental'
by EG
Disney+ has set a premiere date for the recent Pixar animated film Elemental. To celebrate (and to encourage subscribers to sign up for the streaming service), Disney will be offering a limited-time major discount on its subscription rates. The best part is that the discount will be available to returning subscribers as well as new subscribers. Read on for details.
Disney is launching a significant promotional effort meant to help drive subscribers to the advertising-supported tier of Disney+.
Beginning Wednesday and running through Sept. 20, Disney will offer the basic ad tier for $1.99 per month for three months. The tier normally costs $7.99 per month, making the offer an $18 savings. The offer is available to both new and returning subscribers.
While streaming services have historically offered discounts around Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the Disney+ offer is meant to take advantage of a wave of new content set to hit the platform this month.
That content includes the Disney+ premiere of Pixar’s Elemental, which will debut on the service Sept. 13, Disney says. Elemental was released in theaters on June 16, and has since grossed more than $400 million globally.
Other content debuting on Disney+ in September incldue the live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid, which debuts Sept. 6, new episodes of the Star Wars series Ahsoka, the second season of Marvel’s I Am Groot, and a new season of Animals Up Close with Bertie Gregory.
The new content, and the accompanying discount offer, is likely meant to help turbocharge subscribers to Disney+’s advertising tier. While Disney+’s core offering added 800,000 subscribers last quarter, the service as a whole lost about 12 million subs in its Hotstar offering in India and other markets.
Disney+ and other streaming services have been pushing consumers toward ad-supported tiers via price hikes to ad-free offerings and other efforts.
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.