- Disney+ is reportedly considering a completely free tier with ads
- The cheapest tier already contains some ads
- We see streaming platforms becoming more like traditional TV
The line between streaming platforms and traditional TV continues to blur: there is a new report that Disney+ is considering adding a free tier to its platform, fully supported by ads, so that some series and movies could be watched without paying anything.
This comes from Business Insider, which says “people familiar with the matter” have revealed that Disney+ head of product and technology Adam Smith mentioned the possibility of a free tier during a town hall meeting at the company on Thursday (July 9).
That’s all the details we have so far – so it’s just a possibility. Smith gave no indication of when the free tier might be offered to consumers, or how much of the Disney+ library might be available without paying anything.
There is an indication from Business Insider that Disney+ is concerned about YouTube and its continued growth. While you can choose to pay for YouTube Premium, all content on the platform is available for free, with options.
Free vs paid for
Disney explores adding free tier to Disney+ as YouTube attracts TV viewers | The tier would make it possible to access some movies and TV series without a paywall
from r/television
While streaming platforms like Netflix and Apple TV don’t have a completely free tier, there are of course services like Pluto TV and Tubi that are built entirely around free, ad-supported streaming TV (known as FAST).
Statistics from Nielsen, cited by Business Insider, say the top three free streamers accounted for 18.7% of viewing time in the US in April 2026, up from 16.8% a year earlier and 12.7% the year before that – figures Disney+ will have noticed.
Reactions to the rumors on Reddit have been mixed, with the observation that “we’re so close to streamers inventing television” and a quip that “we’ll just get TV again huh” summing up the general sentiment among users.
One poster suggests that the new tier would be “unmanageable” given how many ads already appear on the cheapest Disney+ tier, while another expresses concern that a completely free tier would eventually come with a monthly price as time goes on.
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