After Jimmy Kimmel was suspended for making comments about Charlie Kirk's assassination on his ABC late-night show last month, there were calls for people to cancel their subscriptions to Disney+ and Hulu.
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The reason is that ABC is owned by Disney. If enough subscribers dropped its streaming services, it would signal to Disney's leadership that its decision to silence Kimmel wouldn't be tolerated.
According to the New York Times, millions of subscribers made their voices heard with their wallets.
How Many Subscribers Dropped Disney+ and Hulu After the Suspension of Jimmy Kimmel?
The numbers showed that about 3 million Americans canceled their Disney+ subscriptions, and over 4 million canceled their Hulu subscriptions. This came after a public call for protest following Kimmel's suspension. The Times cited these numbers from the research firm Antenna's report.
This level of cancellations was significantly higher than usual: triple the normal monthly cancellations for Disney+, and more than double for Hulu. This suggests a link to the calls to cancel the services.
Despite these cancellations, Disney+ added over 2 million new subscribers, up 10% from August. Hulu saw a 5 percent increase as well, adding over 2 million new subscribers.
Nearly 130 million people worldwide subscribe to Disney+, and over 180 million subscribe to Disney+ and Hulu.
ESPN Might Be the Cause of the Subscriber Increase
The report did not confirm whether the Kimmel suspension directly caused the cancellations or the increase in new subscribers, though it does infer that it had something to do with it.
At the same time, ESPN, another Disney-owned cable network, launched its own stand-alone app. This allowed viewers to bundle the sports streamer with Disney's other streaming services. With the NFL season in full swing, many football fans likely chose this option.
Prices Are Going Up Today
On the day ABC lifted its suspension on Kimmel last month, Disney also announced a price increase. Reports state that the company had planned this for some time, but the announcement was poorly timed, to say the least.
Starting today, the monthly price of the ad-supported Disney+ plan is increasing by $2. It will now be $11.99 a month.
The ad-free tier of Disney+ is going up by $3. This means it will now be $18.99 a month. Subscribers who bundle Disney+ with Hulu, ESPN, or HBO Max will also experience a price increase.
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