At a recent conference, Disney CEO Bob Iger admitted that Netflix was leading the field in one capacity and was the gold standard to aspire to.

The Walt Disney Company has been making an effort to have its streaming platform, Disney+, become profitable for years. The company struggled when former Disney CEO Bob Chapek was at the helm, and one of current CEO Bob Iger’s big action items and tasks is to have the platform become profitable, and Iger’s promised it will be by the end of 2024.

Disney CEO Bob Iger with Mickey Mouse / Credit: Disney

Iger Admits Disney Has to Learn from Netflix

At a recent Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference, Mr. Iger admitted that while Disney+ reached 100 million subscribers incredibly quickly—fans would know the streaming service has around 150 million subs—the company “lacked the technology to lower customer acquisition and retention costs.”

“We’re now in the process of creating all and developing all of that technology. And obviously, the gold standard there is Netflix; we need to be at their level in terms of technology capability,” Mr. Iger commented.

“And one of the reasons why their margins are so much more significant than ours is because they have that technology. So, our marketing expenses are significantly higher; our churn rates are higher than they need to be.”

Disney+ is Disney’s premier streaming service that will soon be combined with Hulu to form one app / Credit: Disney+

Streaming TV has taken over the way audiences engage with digital content, films, and shows. Whether it’s Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Paramount Plus, Disney+, Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max, or Netflix, nowadays, having a streaming platform subscription is a more prudent move for any entertainment lover.

Despite this, Disney+ has struggled for a few years to get to the point where they are profitable, and new reports assert that the Walt Disney Company has even been using bots to manipulate the promotion of its TV shows.

Credit: Netflix

It’ll certainly be interesting to see what Disney chooses to adopt of Neflix’s strategies and how the company moves forward as it works towards helping the streaming platform bring in the revenue it needs.