Disney is offering a significant discount on the ad-supported version of Disney+, as it looks to drive up subscribers for the package before the end of the current quarter.
Starting Sept. 6 and running through Sept. 20, new and returning Disney+ customers in the U.S. can subscribe to Disney+ Basic (with ads) for $1.99/month for three months — 75% off the regular price of $7.99/month. The offer is available to eligible customers at disneyplus.com.
The special promo comes as the price of Disney+ Premium (with no ads) is set to jump 27%, rising from $10.99 to $13.99/month for U.S. customers, as of Oct. 12. At the same time, Disney is aggressively trying to push customers into streaming bundles: On Sept. 6, it is also launching a new ad-free bundled subscription plan with Disney+ and Hulu for $19.99/month, a 37% discount off the plans sold separately.
The ad-supported version of Disney+ provides access to the same content as the tier without ads. According to Disney, it serves no more than four minutes of advertising per hour on Disney+ Basic (which cannot be fast-forwarded through).
Since launching the ad-supported version of Disney+ in the U.S. in December 2022, the company has signed up 3.3 million customers for the plan, CEO Bob Iger told analysts last month. Iger also said that Disney will be exploring new ways of cracking down on illicit password-sharing, and plans to “roll out tactics sometime in 2024.” He declined to quantify how widespread the issue is but said it was “significant.”
Disney+ is the streaming home for content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic and more. The lineup includes the latest Star Wars series, “Ahsoka,” which premiered Aug. 23; the live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid,” starring Halle Bailey as Ariel, which premieres Sept. 6 on the service; “I Am Groot” Season 2, with a series of shorts featuring Marvel’s troublemaking twig; Pixar’s latest movie “Elemental” (Sept. 13); and National Geographic’s “Animals Up Close With Bertie Gregory” (Sept. 13).
