Production Slowdowns Are A Challenge For Disney+

Walt Disney Co. is marking the two-year anniversary of its flagship streaming service with a blitz of programming and promotions that it hopes will help turn the tide on a slowdown in new subscribers, reports The Wall Street Journal.

The company is trying to woo subscribers with perks at its theme parks and by premiering recent hit films like “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” on Disney+ to mark the streaming service’s anniversary, which comes days after Disney’s fourth-quarter earnings showed a disappointing two million new sign-ups in the quarter.

That was below previous quarters and Wall Street expectations, putting Disney’s streaming division on the defensive for the first time since its launch. Disney shares closed down more than 7% Thursday following the report, reaching their lowest levels in nearly a year.

The easing of stay-at-home orders and production delays for new programming contributed to the weaker signups, the company said earlier this week.

Vulnerability in Disney’s streaming division hits investors especially hard after they rewarded the service’s pandemic success by sending shares to sky-high prices, helping the company weather many months of closed movie theaters and theme parks.

Disney is promoting its content and touting its expansion into new foreign markets to help reverse the slowdown, even as the company still has to wait months for some of its most-anticipated new shows to premiere.

Production slowdowns tied to Covid-19 have caused a number of Disney’s most anticipated titles to premiere in 2022 and beyond, and many of the shows and movies promoted as part of its “Disney+ Day” corporate holiday are still months away. On Wednesday, Disney executives said they expect their desired cadence of new titles on Disney+ to come in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Disney+’s next wave of programming shows that the company is relying on established brands and characters to bolster its menu of choices. Characters from years-old movies like “Up” and “Ice Age” are featured, as well as reboots or new installments of properties like “Home Alone,” “Enchanted” and “Cheaper by the Dozen.”