Disney+ Grosses Nearly $100 Million on Mobile in Its First Two Months

Two months after Disney’s long-anticipated entrance into the streaming video on demand, or SVOD, market with Disney+, Sensor Tower Store Intelligence data confirms that the service’s mobile app has now been downloaded nearly 41 million times across the App Store and Google Play and has generated an estimated $97.2 million in user spending.

Disney+ had the best launch month of all comparable SVOD apps in terms of user spending—and we can now confirm that this also holds true when considering its second month post-launch. Disney+ generated $43.9 million during its second month, in addition to the $53.3 million it made during its first 30 days.

While competitors Netflix and Hulu predate our available data, we can see that, in comparison, Disney rival HBO Now grossed $23.7 million during its first 60 days—even when launching alongside a new season of its top program, Game of Thrones—and Showtime grossed $1.2 million.

In terms of downloads, Disney+’s second month garnered 13.5 million, or 33 percent, of the 40.9 million installs it’s seen since launch. Comparatively, 29 percent of HBO Now’s downloads during its first 60 days came from its second month. Showtime installs were more significantly front loaded, with only 16 percent of its downloads during our 60-day analysis period occurring in its second month.

While its competitors launched within the United States only, Disney+ debuted, and is currently available, in five countries: the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands. Even when taking only U.S. figures into account, Disney+’s first 60-day period still exceeds that of its competitors: 84 percent of its revenue and installs came from the U.S.

Where Can Disney Go From Here?

It’s worth noting that Disney entered an established space with the launch of Disney+, while existing SVOD services such as Netflix and Hulu had to feel out the market in their early days, adjusting their strategies over time. While this makes their launch periods appear comparatively slow, those early lessons are what built them into billion-dollar companies. Disney+, by launching its own SVOD service now, has been able to employ its predecessors’ learnings for success early on.

While Disney+’s performance is impressive thus far, its flagship series, The Mandalorian, concluded its first season in late December, so Disney will need to prioritize releasing more original content of a similar calibre in order to retain its current subscribers and encourage new signups. We'll have more analysis of Disney+ over the coming months.