Disney Plus ends free trials for new subscribers
Baby Yoda – officially called The Child – helped increase the viral popularity of The Mandalorian, Disney’s flagship original series, at launch.
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Disney Plus no longer offers free trials to new subscribers and ends an action that allows users to try the streaming video service for a week before paying.
A Disney spokeswoman characterized the abolition of the free trial as part of ongoing testing of various offers, promotions, and other marketing efforts to expand Disney Plus. “The service was offered at an attractive price-performance ratio that we believe will offer compelling entertainment in itself,” she said. Disney Plus costs $ 7 a month and allows members to cancel and sign up at any time.
Free trial versions are standard with most streaming services. For example, Netflix, the world’s leading subscription streaming provider, offers a free 30-day trial for new members.
Removing the free trial offer for Disney Plus has been in the works for weeks. While the free trial ended itself sometime this week, the company had stopped advertising it in its Disney Plus marketing weeks ago. Other free Disney Plus trials could reappear as the service launches in new markets or new partnerships are launched.
The move will take place two weeks before the next Disney Plus release, the premiere of Hamilton, the filmed version of the original Broadway cast starring the award-winning hip hop musical. The film was previously scheduled for a theatrical release in October 2021, but Disney decided to take it straight to the streaming service more than a year earlier because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Disney Plus is perhaps the best-known example of the realignment of traditional Hollywood to compete against Netflix, Amazon and others in streaming. Disney Plus, which started on November 12 for $ 7 a month, was one of the first in a flood of new streaming services, all launched within months of each other. This trend is sometimes referred to as a streaming war. The launch was an unsurpassed success: Disney Plus saw an increase to 54.5 million subscribers in early May. This was a rapid growth that a media analyst described as “one of the greatest product launches ever”.
