When Disney+ launched, hoards of eager streamers rushed to be among the first to explore the new platform. As a result, the system quickly realized it was in for more subscribers than expected. The service experienced tech issues on day one, leaving many users needing to have a little patience before getting onto Disney+.
Speaking at the Code Media conference, Kevin Mayer, the chairman of the company’s direct-to-consumer and international division, explained that the service didn’t quite expect the volume it did on its opening day.
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“We were very surprised by the size and the magnitude,” he shared, per The Hollywood Reporter. “Some limits to the architecture that we had in place were made apparent to us that weren’t before.”
Mayer added that it was also “a coding issue.”
When Disney+ experienced the technical difficulties, the company released an announcement letting users know that they were aware of the situation and that it will be resolved as fast as possible.
“The consumer demand for Disney+ has exceeded our high expectations,” the statement read. “We are so pleased you’re excited to watch all your favorites and are working quickly to resolve any current issues. We appreciate your patience.”
On Tuesday, an investigation by ZDnet suggested that thousands of accounts had been hacked with their information appearing on hacking forums. Despite rumors of a security hack facing subscribers, Mayer said that the news isn’t anything to worry about as their protective measurements have continued to shut down any attempts.
“Billions of usernames and passwords leaked from previous breaches at other companies, pre-dating the launch of Disney+, are being sold on the web. We continuously audit our security systems and when we find an attempted suspicious login we proactively lock the associated user account and direct the user to select a new password. We have seen a very small percentage of users in this situation and encourage any users who are having these kind of issues to reach out to our customer support so we can help them.”
The hiccup in the early going hasn’t stopped the hype of Disney+ from coming to fruition. Users have continued to flock to the streaming service. The company has reported that over 10 million people subscribed with more than 3.2 million downloads. The success on day one has analysts predicting the service could eclipse 60 million and approach 80 million subscribers globally within two years.
