The company announced its financial results for the third fiscal quarter and revealed it will stop unveiling the subscriber numbers for Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ starting with their next report.
The Walt Disney Company today reported earnings for its third fiscal quarter ended June 28, 2025, during which the group’s revenues increased 2% for Q3 to US$23.7 billion from US$23.2 billion in Q3 fiscal 2024.
The entertainment segment’s operating income was US$1.0 billion, a US$179 million decrease versus Q3 fiscal 2024.
Direct-to-Consumer revenue increased 6%, which included an adverse impact of 3 percentage points due to Disney+ Hotstar being included in the prior-year quarter’s results. Direct-to-Consumer operating income increased US$365 million to US$346 million.
The group reported 183 million Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions, an increase of 2.6 million versus Q2 fiscal 2025; and 128 million Disney+ subscribers, an increase of 1.8 million versus Q2 fiscal 2025.
Linear Networks operating income declined US$269 million versus Q3 fiscal 2024 largely driven by the Star India transaction.
The Experiences segment reported operating income of US$2.5 billion, an increase of US$294 million versus Q3 fiscal 2024.
“We are pleased with our creative success and financial performance in Q3 as we continue to execute across our strategic priorities,” said Robert A. Iger, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “The company is taking major steps forward in streaming with the upcoming launch of ESPN’s direct-to-consumer service, our just-announced plans with the NFL, and our forthcoming integration of Hulu into Disney+, creating a truly differentiated streaming proposition that harnesses the highest-caliber brands and franchises, general entertainment, family programming, news, and industry-leading sports content. And we have more expansions underway around the world in our parks and experiences than at any other time in our history. With ambitious plans ahead for all our businesses, we’re not done building, and we are excited for Disney’s future.”
No more subscriber numbers from Disney
Following the earnings report announcement, Iger made the surprising announcement that Disney will no longer report their number of subscribers for their OTT services, including Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+.
This follows other streaming services, including OTT giant Netflix, who also made the same announcement a while back.
The CEO argues those numbers are “less meaningful to evaluating the performance of our businesses.”
“We are focused on managing our businesses to deliver growth in a sustained way, and to align our financial reporting with how we operate,” Bob Iger and CFO Hugh Johnston wrote. “Since we began reporting the number of paid subscribers and ARPU, our DTC strategy and the operating environment have evolved. Given this evolution, we plan to implement changes to our Entertainment and Sports financial disclosures.”
