Disney reported quarterly earnings this week. While it no longer shares specific Disney+ subscriber numbers, new CEO Josh D’Amaro spelled out how Disney+ will expand from a traditional streaming service to become a central place in the relationship Disney fans have with the company. The role of Disney+ will span businesses including parks and experiences, and will also incorporate interactivity. 

In today’s episode we discuss this approach why we think it’s uniquely beneficial for Disney to pursue. 
    
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YouTube’s Q1 ad revenue approached $10 billion, up 11% vs. last year and around 25% vs. two years ago. YouTube said that both direct response and brand advertising were strong. However, subscriptions were the fastest growing part of the business, with YouTube Premium and Music performing best, recording their largest increase in non-trial subscribers. 

Meanwhile Antenna estimates that Roku’s Howdy has hit 1 million subscribers less than one year following its launch. At $2.99 per month Howdy is a relatively low cost SVOD service that appears to have high stickiness. The gains speak to Roku's promotional clout. Roku also reported a strong Q1 for ad revenue. 
    
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Netflix reported more steady growth in Q1 ’26 as it transitions to maturity. But from advertising to gaming, and live sports to video podcasts, Netflix is innovating and staying opportunistic. 

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Roku announced that it now reaches 100 million households, up from 90 million in Q1 ’25 and 80 million in Q4 ’23. Related, Hub found in a survey that among households that stream monthly 55% have a Roku smart TV or streaming media player. Roku has become a strong player in aggregation, with 26% of Hub respondents citing Roku as their source for streaming subscriptions, behind Amazon with 54%. 

We discuss all on this week’s podcast, plus  Sony’s plan to remove over-the-air features from certain Bravia TVs, and a protest letter sent by Hollywood celebrities who are against the Paramount-WBD deal. 

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