The Walt Disney Company may be preparing to do something it has never done before: give Disney+ away for free. According to a new report, Disney executives are in early discussions about launching a completely free, ad-supported version of the streaming service as viewers keep drifting toward no-cost platforms.
Chasing YouTube And Tubi
The report, first published by Business Insider and cited by TechCrunch, says Disney Entertainment’s Chief Product and Technology Officer Adam Smith addressed the idea during an employee town hall on Thursday. The plan would make some portion of the Disney+ library available at no cost, allowing the service to compete more directly with free giants like YouTube, Tubi, and The Roku Channel that are steadily eating into legacy media’s share of viewing time.
The numbers help explain the thinking. Nielsen data cited in the report shows free, ad-supported platforms accounted for 18.7 percent of U.S. television viewing in April 2026, up from 16.8 percent a year earlier and just 12.7 percent two years ago. As subscription prices keep climbing, more households are gravitating to whatever they can watch without a monthly bill.
Still Early And Informal
It is important to stress how preliminary this is. The talks are described as exploratory, with two people familiar with the matter telling Business Insider that no decisions have been made on timing, scope, or which markets might see a free tier first. Smith reportedly did not offer a timeline when he raised the concept internally, framing it as part of a broader discussion about better serving fans.
For now, nothing changes for current subscribers. The Disney+ and Hulu bundle remains $12.99 a month with ads or $19.99 without them. Even so, the fact that Disney is openly discussing dropping the paywall on part of its catalog is a striking sign of how much the streaming landscape has shifted since the service launched in 2019. A free tier would also give Disney a much larger pool of viewers to sell advertising against, which the company has increasingly leaned on across its Disney+ and Hulu offerings.
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