Demand for the streaming service’s TV catalog is second to none
Disney is in the spotlight again after reporting first-quarter earnings that pleased Wall Street, but questions swirl around Hulu, which CEO Bob Iger suggested in remarks Thursday that the company might sell. The latest data about the streaming service’s catalog illuminates how Hulu currently fits into Disney’s strategy.
The company has a comfortable position in the market, since its flagship streaming service, Disney+, is one of the fastest-growing. Demand for its original content almost quintupled since its debut at the end of 2019, according to Parrot Analytics’ data, which takes into account consumer research, streaming, downloads and social media, among other engagement.
This growth has been sustained and powered by the valuable IP owned by the company, like the Marvel and “Star Wars” franchises, which provide the company with a number of new shows with an already established fan base.
Catalog demand across streaming services, 2022, U.S. (Parrot Analytics)
Disney markets Hulu in a bundle, which includes Disney+ and ESPN+. According to Parrot Analytics’ demand data, Hulu’s TV catalog was more in demand than any other SVOD catalog in the U.S. market last year. Across total catalog demand, which includes both movies and series, Hulu’s catalog is second only to Netflix.
The chart shows how Hulu fits into Disney’s streaming strategy. While Disney+ relies more on movies (60.4% of its catalog demand comes from movies), Hulu’s catalog is overwhelmingly based on TV series (76.7%). Together, Disney+ and Hulu’s catalogs make up almost a quarter of the total demand for all content available on SVOD in the U.S. Combined, that’s more than any other service and even above the demand share of Warner Bros. Discovery’s planned combination of HBO Max and Discovery+’s catalogs.
Despite the high dependence of Hulu’s TV catalog on licensed content (almost 90% of its TV demand comes from licensed series as opposed to original content), a higher share than any other of the main streaming services, both its licensed and original content contribute to attracting subscribers to the Disney Bundle.
Demographics of Disney+ and Hulu audiences, U.S. (Parrot Analytics)
The audience make-up for both Disney+ and Hulu originals paints a clear picture of two complementary services that together have something to offer everyone. While Disney+’s flagship Marvel and “Star Wars” series have audiences that skew younger and male, many of Hulu’s most in-demand originals appeal to an older and more female audience. Disney+ and Hulu combined create a “four-quadrant service” that today’s entertainment leaders are chasing. Or most of them, anyway: Iger characterized the kind of general entertainment Hulu offers as “undifferentiated” in a recent interview with CNBC.
Looking at the most in-demand original shows from both platforms, we have two “Star Wars” shows at the top, “The Mandalorian” and “Andor,” both with exceptional demand in the last quarter of 2022. These shows are closely followed by “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Hulu’s most in-demand original show, with 32.9 times more demand than the average show that period. Two other Hulu originals appear in the ranking, “The Orville” and “Only Murders in the Building,” both with outstanding demand during that period. This shows that there is demand for non-superhero/adventure franchise titles in the Disney Bundle.
Most in-demand Hulu and Disney+ originals, fourth quarter, 2022 (Parrot Analytics)
The Hulu/Disney+ originals ranking is dominated by Disney franchise titles. Both the Marvel Universe and the “Star Wars” franchise contributed three shows each to the top 10. Another Disney+ show in the ranking is “The Santa Clauses,” a Christmas show that is part of the “Santa Clause” film series and had outstanding demand in the last holiday season, following its release in the middle of November 2022.
Christofer Hamilton is a senior insights analyst at Parrot Analytics, a WrapPRO partner. For more from Parrot Analytics, visit the Data and Analysis Hub.
Parrot Analytics is the industry leader in global audience demand measurement. The company measures global supply and demand for entertainment, capturing over 2 billion audiences expressing demand for content and talent in over 100 languages, across all platforms, in 200+ countries. Parrot Analytics' partners use this knowledge to help better understand global supply and demand across all platforms to value content and talent, drive better production, distribution, acquisition and marketing decisions, as well as increase D2C growth and retention. For more information, see www.parrotanalytics.com.
Parrot Analytics
Parrot Analytics is the industry leader in global audience demand measurement. The company measures global supply and demand for entertainment, capturing over 2 billion audiences expressing demand for content and talent in over 100 languages, across all platforms, in 200+ countries. Parrot Analytics' partners use this knowledge to help better understand global supply and demand across all platforms to value content and talent, drive better production, distribution, acquisition and marketing decisions, as well as increase D2C growth and retention. For more information, see www.parrotanalytics.com.