Fact Check: Disney To Shut Down Disney+ Streaming Service in December 2023?
Claim:
Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that Disney+ would be shutting down in December 2023.
Rating:
On Nov. 11, 2023, the Disney fan blog Inside The Magic published an article positing that Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, announced that the company would be shutting down the Disney+ streaming service in December 2023. The article began:
Disney CEO Reveals Disney+ Will Shut Down in December, Tells Parents to “Prepare”
Disney+ will soon be a thing of the past, says Disney CEO Bob Iger, and parents need to get prepared for that.
However, the headline's claim that Disney+ is shutting down is misleading. The body of the Inside The Magic article explains that Disney, which owns the streaming service Hulu, is trialing a system that would allow Disney+ and Hulu to be accessed from the same app.
Hulu was founded in 2007 as a joint venture between NBC Universal and News Corporation (20th Century Fox). The Walt Disney Company gained an equity stake in 2009 and acquired a majority stake in the service when it bought 20th Century Fox in 2019.
On Nov. 1, 2023, in a news release, the Walt Disney Company announced it would purchase the remaining stakes in Hulu from Comcast (owner of NBC Universal), becoming the full owner of the streaming service.
Disney offers bundle deals that allow customers to access both Hulu and Disney+ content for a reduced price. Instead of merging Disney+ into Hulu, like the headline of the Inside The Magic Article claims, Disney announced beta trials for a unified app that would allow bundle customers to access both services from one place.
This is not the first time Inside The Magic has published articles with similar clickbait headlines. Snopes fact-checked another claim that Disney+ would be shut down in August 2023.
Sources:
“Corporate.” Hulu, https://press.hulu.com/corporate/. Accessed 13 Nov. 2023.
Frank. “The Walt Disney Company to Purchase Remaining Stake in Hulu from Comcast.” The Walt Disney Company, 1 Nov. 2023, https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/disney-hulu/.
Hulu | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica. 8 Nov. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hulu.
Kamal, Nathan. “Disney CEO Reveals Disney+ Will Shut Down in December, Tells Parents to ‘Prepare.’” Inside the Magic, 11 Nov. 2023, https://insidethemagic.net/2023/11/disney-to-shut-down-next-year-nk1/.
Kumar, Priyanka. “Is Disney+ Shutting Down?” DisneyFanatic.Com, 13 Nov. 2023, https://www.disneyfanatic.com/disney-plus-shutting-down-pk1/.
Liles, Jordan. “Disney Is Not Ending Disney+, Despite Clickbait Headline on Disney Fan Blog.” Snopes, 22 Aug. 2023, https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/disney-plus-not-ending/.
Moses, Lucia. “Disney Will Soon Own All of Hulu. Here’s How the Company Got Here and What’s Next.” Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/disney-bought-owns-hulu-valuation-explained-whats-next. Accessed 13 Nov. 2023.
Spangler, Todd. “Disney+, Hulu Merged App to Launch Next Month for Bundle Subscribers, Bob Iger Says.” Variety, 8 Nov. 2023, https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/disney-hulu-merged-app-launch-december-1235784927/.
Werner, Erica. “Disney to Acquire All of Hulu, Heralding More Mergers, Higher Prices.” Washington Post, 2 Nov. 2023. www.washingtonpost.com, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/11/02/hulu-disney-streaming-acquisition/.
