Coronavirus Aids Disney+ in Massive Subscription Spike Amid Self-Isolation and Quarantine Period

Disney+ is reportedly seeing a huge spike in subscriptions as more and more people remain at home during the coronavirus pandemic. The global emergency has some people out of work and others working from home, spending as much time as possible isolated from others. According to a report by Forbes, that means more people are signing up for Disney's new streaming service.

The data comes from a streaming analytics firm called Antenna, and shows a huge spike in new users subscribing to Disney+. New signups between Saturday, March 14 and Monday, March 16 reportedly tripled when compared to the same time frame last week. Out of the biggest competitors in the streaming industry, Disney+ saw the biggest gains by far during this period. Experts say it is most likely due to the social distancing practices required to slow the spread of COVID-19, the coronavirus.

One reason why Disney+ may be leading the pack during this fearful time is that it is marketed for families. For all the adults out of work during this time, there are children out of school all around the world, and unable to go socialize with other people their age. It makes sense that they would need this new reservoir of family-friendly programming to keep busy.

On top of that, there is the slate of new offerings coming to Disney+. Next week, Disney is releasing one of its brand new movies, Onward straight to the streaming service. In more normal time, a Pixar original like Onward would have a much longer run in theaters, then likely on video-on-demand services before coming to a subscription-based streaming platform like this.

Other streaming services are seeing huge jumps as well, including Netflix, HBO Now, Showtime and Amazon Prime Video. Many of these companies are offering extended free trials or special bundles to entice new customers. Disney+ remains competitive with its already low price, which many experts believe is a strategy to help it get established in the crowded market.

However, all this increased viewership is putting a strain on the world's Internet service infrastructure as well. On Monday, YouTube announced that all videos would now default to standard-definition (SD) to help accommodate the increasing web traffic, and other companies are taking similar measures.

Meanwhile, new streaming services are launching soon as well, including NBC's Peacock, WarnerMedia's HBO Max and Quibi, the mobile-based streaming service due out in April. Hopefully, all of this is enough to keep fans inside through the coronavirus pandemic. For the latest news on the outbreak visit the CDC's website.