As part of its financial results release for the fourth quarter of 2020, Discovery has announced it has now reached 11 million direct-to-consumer subscribers globally, and expects that to rise to 12 million by the end of the month.
The company’s new streaming service Discovery Plus began its global roll-out in January, although it did launch in the UK at the end of 2020. However, Discovery hasn’t revealed official sign-up numbers for the streamer yet.
“We are off to a promising start in 2021 with the successful launch of Discovery Plus,” said the company’s president and CEO David Zaslav. “We have now surpassed 11 million total paying direct-to-consumer subscribers globally and are on pace to be at 12 million by the end of the month, underscoring the value of the investments we’ve made in content, beloved personalities and brands with huge consumer appeal, supported by industry-leading DTC capabilities.
Discovery said it saw total share of viewing across its international portfolio in Q4 improve by 4 per cent on average, with strong performances in the UK, Spain and Poland.
It added that its total international networks revenues decreased by 8 per cent in 2020 compared to the year before, which it attributed to both the pandemic and the discontinuation of pay-TV distribution with certain European operators.
