One of the leading streaming platforms in the U.S. quietly tested a livestreaming option Tuesday. Could this be a potential item to watch?
What Happened: The Academy Award nominations were announced live on “Good Morning America” Tuesday morning. The show had the exclusive to announce the nominations with ABC, a unit of Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS), as the television home of the Academy Awards.
On Tuesday, Disney’s streaming platform Disney+ tested a livestream by airing the award nominations to subscribers of the platform.
The Streamable highlighted Tuesday that this was the first livestream from Disney+
“We performed a test for livestreaming capabilities on Disney+ in U.S.,” the company told The Streamable. “We are pleased with the results and will continue to test … to deliver the best user experiences to consumers.”
Disney owns ABC, ESPN and other networks that regularly air live programming, which could be a value add-on for the streaming platform.
Related Link: Walt Disney Company Q4 Highlights: 118.1M Disney+ Subs, Lower ARPU, Parks & Resort Segment Up 99%
Why It’s Important: Disney’s quiet test of its first livestream has been noticed by some and as something more than a test.
Disney+ ended the fourth quarter with 118.1 million subscribers, up from 73.7 million in the prior year’s period and from the 116 million reported in the third quarter.
ESPN+ had 17.1 million subscribers in the fourth quarter, up 66% year-over-year.
Hulu, which is majority-owned by Disney with Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) holding a 33% stake, had 43.8 million subscribers in the fourth quarter.
One item that has been a concern for the growth of Disney+ and its streaming platforms has been the average revenue per user. As the company grows its international customer base, it has seen the ARPU for Disney+ hit $4.12 in the fourth quarter, down 9% year-over-year.
One way to fix this could be to add packages or offerings, such as livestreaming.
Disney currently offers various bundles that include Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. Hulu offers tiers of streaming with ads, streaming without ads and no ads with live television.
Disney will likely remain quiet on its potential for livestreaming in the future, but it remains a potential way for the company to do well in the highly competitive battle for streaming subscribers and to charge more to subscribers in the future.
Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) recently announced it was raising the price of its subscription plans. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) announced it would raise prices for its Amazon Prime memberships, which include access to the Amazon Prime Video library of content.
Price Action: DIS shares are down 0.021% to $142.48 at market close Tuesday. The company is scheduled to report first-quarter earnings after market close Wednesday.
