Hulu Discontinuing the Disney+ Add-On to Encourage More Bundle Use

Customers curious about Disney+ now have fewer choices to sign up for the service. Previously, Disney allowed new subscribers to sign up for a Disney+ subscription as an add-on to Hulu, as they can do with ESPN+, Max, and other streamers in order to keep their bills all in one place and take advantage of discounts. However, the House of Mouse has begun informing customers that they can no longer purchase Disney+ as a Hulu add-on, instead pushing users to one of the Disney Bundle options instead.

Key Details:

• Formerly, Disney+ could be added to Hulu for an extra $2 per month.
• Customers are now encouraged to sign up for the Disney Duo Basic bundle for $11 per month.
• Viewers who had the Disney+ add-on via Hulu are being updated to the Duo Basic plan at no additional cost.

Dismney has been making changes to its subscription pages and informing customers that changes are coming. For new and returning Hulu customers, they will not be able to select the Disney+ add-on, however, those who are currently signed up for the added streamer are being automatically transitioned to the Disney Duo Basic bundle instead.

Functionally, this will mean that such customers who had an ad-supported version of the Disney+ add-on will not see any changes. Duo Basic costs $11 per month, and customers who were paying less than that to get both services will continue to pay the same rate they did before, as confirmed by emails that such subscribers have received from Hulu. The Streamable has reached out to Disney representatives for additional details, but as of publication time has not received a response.

Disney recently raised prices on all of its base streaming plans, as well as most of its bundle configurations. The combination of Hulu and the Disney+ add-on under the new pricing system would have been $12 per month ($10 for ad-supported Hulu, another $2 for the Disney+ add-on), so customers are actually saving $1 monthly with the Disney Duo Basic bundle than they would have paid following the price hike.

Why is Disney discontinuing the add-on? The answer is fairly obvious: the company wants more customers for the Disney Bundle. Offering Disney+ as an add-on allows customers to cancel it while still keeping their Hulu subscription, whereas with the bundle they have to cancel both services at once. The Disney Bundle is proven to reduce churn, and keeping long-term customers helps Disney make more money off of them over time.

You can sign up for the Disney Bundle here, or grab Hulu only here. The Duo Basic bundle is functionally the same product as Hulu with the Disney+ add-on, but customers will have to cancel both Disney+ and Hulu if they want to get out of it, making it theoretically more likely that they will stay subscribed.