Disney+, pronounced like “Disney Plus”, is the streaming service launched by the Hollywood powerhouse to compete with the likes of Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV+, and Max (née HBO Max). In arrived on UK shores in March 2020 with a 7-day free trial for all new viewers.
Like Netflix, Disney+ subscribers have unlimited access to everything in the catalogue of shows, documentaries, and films. You can watch as many times as you want, with rolling one-month and annual subscriptions available.
The catalogue is packed with a treasure-trove of the animated classics that made Walt Disney a household name, as well as popular franchises like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. These sit alongside the latest movies and series from Pixar Studios, National Geographic, 20th Century Studios, and Walt Disney animation, which is responsible for recent hits like Frozen, Moana, Encanto, and Zootopia.
Films from Disney and its other studios usually arrive on the Disney+ catalogue at the same time as they become available to rent or buy on other platforms, like Prime Video, Sky Store, and iTunes.
Popular movies like Avatar: The Way Of Water, Nightmare Alley and West Side Story landed on Disney+ within weeks of leaving the local multiplex. The latest Marvel films, likeThe Marvels and Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, sit alongside exclusive series like WandaVision that tie into the continuity.
Disney+ is available on a dizzying number of devices, including Smart TVs, iPad, iPhone, Android phones and tablets, Windows and Mac, to name a few DISNEY PLUS PRESS OFFICE The Disney Channel was pulled from Sky TV and Virgin Media in late 2020, with its content now available to watch exclusively on Disney+ apps.
In the UK, Disney+ subscribers also gain access to shows and movies that were commissioned exclusively for Hulu, including the likes of Prey, Dopesick, The Kardashians, and The Bear. These fall under the Star brand, which is designed to appeal to more mature audiences.
As well as the UK, Disney+ is available in the United States, Canada, and 60 more countries worldwide. You’ll be login to your existing account when you travel to continue watching on your holidays, although be aware that licensing agreements might mean the catalogue is slightly different in other countries.
Disney+ is investing heavily in original shows and films for subscribers worldwide. It has announced a slew of productions in the UK, France, Portugal, Spain, as well as the United States.
How much does Disney+ charge to access all this content? Well, that question was much easier to answer early last year when Disney+ had a one-size-fits-all approach to its subscription plan.
But starting in November 2023, Disney+ overhauled its subscription offering in the UK, dropping the starting price from £7.99 down to £4.99, but introducing ad breaks for some subscribers.
We’ve got everything you need to know about Disney+ below...
Disney+ shook upits subscription in November last year, ditching the one-size-fits-all approach that it had adopted since its UK launch in March 2020 in favour of multiple tiers, like Netflix.
The result is a bit of a mixed bag. For those who want to save money on their monthly subscriptions, this is a brilliant result as it’s now possible to watch everything on Disney+ for £4.99 per month.
That’s a £2 saving compared to the previous subscription – or an extra £24 in your pocket each year.
But those who subscribed to Disney+ to watch the latest Star Wars and Marvel blockbusters in 4K Ultra HD quality with Dolby Atmos will need to pay more than ever before. While both featureswere included as standard with the previous £7.99 per month subscription, Disney+ now reserves them for its flagship £10.99 per month plan.
All Disney+ subscribers will be able to stream on at least two devices at the same time.
Once you’ve subscribed to the streamer, you’ll be able to log in to any of the dozens of different apps available, including on iPhone and Android phones, iPad and other tablets, games consoles, set-top boxes like Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV.
Disney+ is also built-in to the most popular Smart TVs, including Samsung, LG, Sony, and Hisense, to name a few. Satellite broadcaster Sky has also added support for Disney+ to its Sky Stream and Q boxes as well as its custom-designed Sky Glass TV.
Find the full breakdown of all three Disney+ subscription plans below...
Disney+ did offer a 7-day free trial to all new subscribers when it launched in the UK back in March 2020 ...but it didn't last long. Disney+ dropped the week-long free trial in June 2020 and it hasn't returned since.
The Disney+ free trial did last a little longer in some countries, but at the time of writing, it's now vanished from the UK, United States of America, Canada, and mainland Europe.
Interestingly, Netflix did something very similar when it released its streaming service. At launch, new subscribers could watch everything included in the catalogue for 30 days without paying. The free trial was ditched in December 2019 and hasn't returned since.
Amazon still offers a 30-day free trialto watch everything available with its Prime Video streaming service. It's part of the Amazon Prime membership, which costs £8.99 and also unlocks perks when shopping with the online retailer, like next-day delivery and access to Lightning Deals.
Disney+ has a number of exclusive shows that you won't be able to watch anywhere else in the UK, including hit series that tie into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well as reality TV series The Kardashians, and FX and Hulu shows from the US, like Welcome to Wrexham and The Bear
WALT DISNEY COMPANY
It’scurrently possible to share your Disney+ login details with friends and family, so they can watch the same shows, films, and documentaries without spending money on a separate subscription.
Of course, you’ll still be subject to the maximum number of concurrent streams listed above — so those with a Standard plan will encounter issues if three or more people are attempting to watch on the same account at the same time.
Disney says you’re not allowed to share your login with people outside of your “household”, which it defines as the “devices associated with your primary personal residence”. This condition in the small-print was added in recent months ahead of the announced crackdown on password-sharing.
The terms and conditions now read: “You may not share your account and subscription outside of your household. “Household” means the collection of devices associated with your primary personal residence that are used by the individuals who reside therein.”
Disney executives have confirmed that, starting this summer, the streamer will start to block activity from outside of your home address. Speaking in the latest earnings call with shareholders, Hugh Johnston, Disney’s Chief Financial Officer, confirmed: “Disney+ accounts suspected of improper sharing will be presented with new capabilities to allow their borrowers to start their own subscriptions. Later this calendar year, account holders who want to allow access to individuals from outside their household will be able to add them to their accounts for an additional fee.”
The company has been a little quiet about exactly how it will do this, but we’d imagine the system will be similar to what we’ve seen from Netflix. In that case, the streamer asks you to set a primary location for your account when you sign in.
While you’re still allowed to travel with mobile devices, like an iPhone or Android phone, any other Smart TVs, streaming dongles, or Sky and Freeview set-top boxes will warn that you’re outside of your Netflix Household and prompt you to change the associated location ...or add an extra paid member to your subscription at the rate of £4.99 a month per person.
If you haven’t manually set a Netflix Household for your account, it will be set automatically based on the location where you most frequently stream from the video on-demand service.
It’s unclear how much Disney+ will charge to add an extra person to your existing subscription, however, it must be less than a £4.99 ad-supported subscription. Of course, the House of Mouse could follow in Netflix’s footsteps once again and only allow extra households to be added to its ad-free subscriptions. We’ll update this guide once we’ve had confirmation from the streamer.
