iWorld
Disney+ reaches 54.5 mn subscribers; execs pleased with India launch
MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Company (Disney) has witnessed a sharp fall in profit as a consequence of the Covid2019 pandemic. While the giant faced widespread disruption like many other organisations, it has one card in store: the newly launched streaming service Disney+. The streaming service is seeing a fast growth in subscribers, which now stands at 54.5 million as of 4 May. It seems shelter-in-place directive has worked in its favour as the service has added 21 million subscribers in less than two months.
Disney senior executive vice president and chief financial officer Christine M McCarthy said in an earnings call that since they continued launches in several markets between quarter end and 5 May, the subscriber number has also increased reaching 54.5 million. She also added the subscriber mix reflects the same as it did on 8 April when they announced that the service surpassed 50 million subscribers globally.
"At our direct-to-consumer international segment, operating losses were $427 million higher due to the cost incurred for the online launch of Disney+ around the world and consolidation of Hulu. Disney+ launched in the number of European markets in the world which contributed to a total paid subscriber base of 33.5 million at the end of the quarter and we are very happy with our successful rollout in Western Europe and India where we converted our pre-existing subscription base Hotstar service to Disney+Hotstar,” she added. In India, it already accounts for approximately eight million subscribers as per numbers shared last month.
The new Disney CEO Bob Chapek, for whom it was the first earnings, also expressed his ecstasy over the successful rollout in Western Europe and India. “We have been thrilled with the performance of Disney+. Since our initial launch in November, we have continued to expand in other markets. In late march as planned, despite Covid2019, we had an incredible launch in Western Europe followed by a highly successful launch in India,” he added. While in India it was scheduled to launch during the billion-dollar sports event IPL to exploit the Hotstar user base, it launched around scheduled time despite the suspension of the tournament.
“The Hotstar service in India was converted to Disney+ Hotstar, resulting in approximately eight million additional Disney+ paid subscribers. In general, wholesale arrangements have a lower average monthly revenue per paid subscriber than subscribers that we acquire directly or through third party platforms like Apple. In addition, the average monthly revenue per paid subscriber for Disney+ Hotstar is significantly lower than the average monthly revenue per paid subscriber in North America and Europe,” The Walt Disney Company said in a regulatory filing.
Disney’s overall average monthly revenue per paid subscriber for the second quarter stood at $5.63.
"As we will use our branded film and television content on the Disney+ service, we are forgoing certain licensing revenue from the sale of this content to third parties in TV/SVOD markets. In addition, we are increasing programming and production investments to create exclusive content for Disney+," it added in the regulatory filing.
Chapek added that the streaming service will begin rolling out in Japan in June, followed by Belgium, Luxembourg, Portugal in September and Latin America towards the end of the year. He promised that the vast collection of libraries in regional content available will continue to grow. He added that they will continue to make the planned investment that they always had into programming to drive subscription rate and retention.
Gaming
MTG gaming chief Benninghoff joins NODWIN board as esports firm primes for IPO
The Gurugram-based esports firm is pursuing a public listing, has returned to profitability and is growing revenues by 42 per cent
GURUGRAM: NODWIN Gaming is moving fast. The Gurugram-based gaming and esports company has launched a pre-IPO fundraising round, appointed UBS as lead adviser for both the round and a subsequent public listing, and landed a heavyweight board director, all in one go.
The new board member is Arnd Benninghoff, executive vice president of gaming at Stockholm-listed Modern Times Group (MTG), who has overseen the group’s strategic investments and portfolio growth since 2014. He is no stranger to building things: Benninghoff has founded and built fifteen companies, served as chief digital officer at ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG, managing director of SevenVentures, and chief executive of Holtzbrinck eLAB. He began his career as a journalist at Deutsche Presse Agentur and various TV networks, holds a Diplom-Kaufmann in business and administration from the University of Münster, and previously sat on the board of Edgeware AB.
The numbers back the ambition
NODWIN is not pitching a story without substance. The company has returned to EBITDA profitability and posted a 42 per cent year-on-year revenue surge, reaching $58.5m in the first nine months of FY2026. The pre-IPO round will combine a primary issuance to fund global expansion through organic growth and acquisitions, alongside a secondary sale to give existing shareholders some liquidity.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, said Benninghoff understands “the entire lifecycle of the gaming and media ecosystem, from the boots-on-the-ground reality of building startups to the strategic complexity of managing multi-billion dollar global portfolios.”
Benninghoff, for his part, said the company “sits at the intersection of sports, entertainment, and technology, making it one of the most exciting players in the global gaming landscape today.”
A portfolio built for the global south
Founded in 2014 by Rathee and Gautam Virk, NODWIN has quietly assembled one of the more compelling esports portfolios outside the Western hemisphere. Its properties include DreamHack India and Comic Con India, and it recently acquired StarLadder, the Ukraine-based tournament organiser behind premier events in CS:GO and Dota 2. The company also serves as a long-term strategic marketing partner for the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), the world’s most prominent fighting game tournament, helping push it into new geographies.
Its geographic focus spans South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Backers include Nazara Technologies, KRAFTON, Sony Group Corporation, JetSynthesys, and the founders’ investment vehicle Good Game Investments.
What comes next
With UBS running the books, a board freshly reinforced with European media and gaming expertise, and revenue heading in the right direction, NODWIN is laying the groundwork deliberately. The esports industry has burned investors before with big promises and thin margins. NODWIN’s return to profitability, combined with a real portfolio of owned intellectual properties across gaming, music and youth culture, gives it a more credible runway than most. The IPO clock is now ticking.
