Walt Disney sharply reduced its losses from video streaming in the second quarter as the company cut costs and raised subscription prices for services, including its flagship Disney Plus platform.
But Disney’s streaming business also lost 4mn subscribers in the quarter, mostly due to the loss of Indian Premier League cricket on its Hotstar service in India. Disney shares fell more than 4 per cent in after-hours trading.
Since he returned to the company in November, Bob Iger, Disney chief executive, has been under pressure to stop the bleeding of cash at its streaming services, as investors lose patience with the growth-at-all costs investment into streaming by the company and its rivals. Disney has pumped more than $10bn into its streaming business since launching in 2019 as it went head-to-head with Netflix.