The ad-supported version of Disney+ has officially become available as part of Spectrum TV Select packages at no additional cost.
The move, which stems from a first-of-its-kind carriage agreement between Disney and Charter Communications in September, will offer access to the streaming service through any Disney+ supported device, alongside Disney’s suite of linear television channels.
“The inclusion of Disney+ alongside a curated lineup of our TV channels brings the best of both worlds from Disney’s unrivaled entertainment portfolio to Charter’s video customers,” Disney platform distribution president Justin Connolly said in a statement. “Our goal has always been to meet consumers where they are, and these collective offerings will maximize value for Spectrum TV Select customers while simultaneously broadening the audience of our advertiser supported streaming services.”
“As the video industry continues to evolve, we are committed to including direct-to-consumer apps like Disney+ with Spectrum services while providing a simplified TV viewing experience through platforms such as the Xumo Stream Box,” Charter programming acquisition executive vice president Tom Montemagno added. “We are pleased to partner with Disney to further this goal to the benefit of our mutual customers.”
Spectrum TV Select customers can activate their Disney+ Basic subscription here. Disney+ subscribers can go to the website or app where they purchased the service to manage their subscriptions to receive the full benefit of their Spectrum-provided service.
In addition to Disney+ Basic, Charter plans to begin including complimentary access to ESPN+ in its Spectrum TV Select Plus video package in the coming months.
ESPN+ includes more than 30,000 exclusive, live sports events, including exclusive UFC events, NHL live games, college sports from more than 20 conferences, international soccer, exclusive PGA Tour live coverage, Grand Slam tennis, international cricket and more. It also features on-demand original content like “Peyton’s Places” and the “Places Universe” shows, “Man in the Arena,” “The Captain,” “Why Not Us” and the entire library of ESPN’s award-winning “30 for 30” films.
While Spectrum will continue to carry ABC-owned stations, Disney Channel, FX, the Nat Geo Channel and the full suite of ESPN networks, the carriage agreement allows Charter to drop Baby TV, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Freeform, FXM, FXX, Nat Geo Wild and Nat Geo Mundo from its Spectrum TV video packages.
Charter reported 14.4 million video customers during its third quarter of 2023, down 6% year over year.
The company shed 327,000 pay TV subscribers during the quarter — 320,000 residential video customers and 7,000 small and medium business customers. About 100,000 of the residential video-customer disconnects were related to the temporary loss of Disney programming in early September.
While acknowledging the overall impact of the dispute on Charter’s customer relationships was less than expected, CFO Jessica Fischer noted the company’s billing and retention call centers were not fully back to normal until early October, resulting in a “lingering customer net add impact early in the fourth quarter.”
Shares of Charter has fallen 3% during Thursday’s trading session, while Disney stock has slipped 1.47%.
