Iger Says Disney Is Ready to Employ Measures to Stop Password Sharing Starting in 2024
It was only a matter of time before another streamer hopped onto the anti-password-sharing train. Netflix was famously the first, handing down rules to prevent users from sharing their login information with people outside their homes in May.
Disney is officially working on similar rules for its streaming services. That news came from CEO Bob Iger, who spoke about the company’s plans to introduce rules against sharing of accounts on Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ during its conference call with analysts and investors to discuss its quarterly earnings report.
“Regarding password sharing, we already have the technical capability to monitor much of this,” Iger said. “And I’m not going to give you a specific number, except to say that it’s significant. What we don’t know, of course, is as we get to work on this, how much of the password sharing as we basically eliminate it will convert to growth in subs. Obviously, we believe there will be some, but we’re not speculating.”
Users shouldn’t expect a sudden introduction of rules without warning, however. Iger said that while the company is working on resolutions to stop password sharing, they won’t be introduced to customers at any point during 2023.
“In calendar ‘24, we’re going to get at this issue,” he went on. “And so while it is likely you’ll see some impact in calendar ‘24, it’s possible that we won’t be complete or the work will not be completed within the calendar year. But we certainly have established this as a real priority. And we actually think that there’s an opportunity here to help us grow our business.”
The growth of the business seems like a somewhat laughable goal for Disney, one of the largest media organizations on the planet. But Disney’s streaming segment is suffering; both Disney+ and ESPN+ lost subscribers during the company’s last fiscal quarter, marking the third in a row that Disney+ has dropped users.
The company is committing to its streaming segment to the point that it’s potentially willing to sell off its cable channels, which means it has to monetize its streaming users however possible. That’s the same logic that led Disney to announce price increases for all of its streaming services this week.
As the only streamer to regularly report being profitable, Netflix has given its competitors a roadmap to follow to achieve the same goal. Introducing an ad-supported tier, increasing subscription prices, and cracking down on password sharing are three important stops along the way, and Disney is going step-by-step to try to optimize its streamers in every possible way.
Disney+
Disney+ is a video streaming service with over 13,000 series and films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, The Muppets, and more. It is available in 61 countries and 21 languages. It is notable for its popular original series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ms. Marvel,” “Loki,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Andor.”