Revenues, expenses, and operating profits/losses of direct-to-consumer businesses of selected media companies worldwide in the fiscal year 2026
Fiscal year 2026 represents the maturation of the streaming industry's business model. After years of investing in subscriber growth at the expense of profitability, major DTC segments have achieved scale sufficient to generate meaningful operating income. Five of the six major DTC segments tracked here are profitable in FY2026 -- only Peacock remains in loss territory, and even Peacock is near breakeven (-$0.1B). This compares to FY2022, when Disney DTC alone lost approximately $4 billion and Peacock lost $2.5 billion. The HVOD revenue context is in our HVOD services revenue worldwide analysis and U.S. subscriber context in our Disney Plus subscribers U.S. analysis.
The DTC profitability transformation has been driven by three forces: subscriber scale spreading fixed content costs across larger paying bases, price increases lifting average revenue per subscriber, and advertising revenue from ad-supported tiers adding incremental income with minimal content cost. Netflix exemplifies the end state: $51 billion revenue, $34 billion in total costs (including $20B+ content), and $17 billion in operating income -- a 33.3% margin that few traditional media businesses can match. HVOD subscriber base context in our HVOD subscribers by AVOD/SVOD tier analysis.
DTC segment revenue FY2026 -- Netflix $51B leads, Disney $27.2B second
The bar chart below ranks all six major DTC segments by total revenue in FY2026. Netflix's $51 billion is the largest by a wide margin -- nearly double Disney DTC's $27.2 billion. Disney DTC revenue pricing is in our Disney streaming subscription prices analysis.
DTC revenue vs expenses FY2026 -- all companies compared side by side
The grouped bar chart below compares total revenue and total expenses for each DTC segment in FY2026. The gap between revenue and expenses bars represents operating income (or loss). Netflix's gap is the largest in absolute terms ($17B). Disney DTC's gap is narrower (6.3% margin) due to its $24-25B content investment. Content spend driving expenses is in our media content spending analysis.
DTC operating income/loss FY2026 -- Netflix $17B, Apple $2B, Disney $1.7B, WBD $1B
The horizontal bars below rank each DTC segment by operating income in FY2026. Netflix's $17 billion is 10x Disney DTC's $1.7 billion -- reflecting Netflix's pure-play global streaming scale versus Disney's more fragmented cost structure across three platforms (Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+) and content types. Full subscriber data for these DTC segments in our global SVOD subscriber count by platform analysis.
DTC operating margin FY2026 -- Netflix 33.3% leads, Disney 6.3%, Apple 19%
The chart below compares operating margins across all DTC segments in FY2026. Netflix's 33.3% margin is the benchmark the industry aspires to. Apple TV+'s 19.0% margin is notable -- reflecting Apple's strategy of quality over quantity (small content spend relative to Apple's deep pockets). Disney DTC's 6.3% margin reflects the NBA rights cost pressure in FY2026. ARPU data supporting these margins in our Disney Plus ARPU worldwide analysis.
Industry DTC operating income trend 2020-2026 -- from -$8B loss to +$22B profit
The line chart below tracks the combined operating income/loss of all six major DTC segments from 2020 to 2026. The industry swung from approximately -$8 billion in combined DTC losses in 2022 (peak investment phase) to approximately +$22 billion in combined DTC operating income in 2026. The HVOD subscriber base driving this growth is in our HVOD subscribers by AVOD/SVOD tier analysis.
In FY2022, the six major DTC segments combined for approximately -$8.2 billion in operating losses. Disney DTC alone lost ~$4 billion. Peacock lost ~$2.5 billion. WBD lost ~$1.5 billion. Only Netflix was profitable. By FY2026, combined DTC operating income reaches approximately +$22 billion. The streaming industry has completed its profit transition in four years -- faster than most media industry analysts predicted in 2022. The subscriber pricing history driving this in our Disney Plus ARPU worldwide analysis.
DTC segment revenue, expenses, and operating income -- full data table FY2025 and FY2026
| Company / Segment | Revenue FY2026 ($B) | Expenses FY2026 ($B) | Oper. Income FY2026 ($B) | Margin FY2026 | Revenue FY2025 ($B) | Oper. Income FY2025 ($B) | Source FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netflix | $51.0B | $34.0B | +$17.0B | 33.3% | $45.18B | +$13.33B | Netflix SEC 8-K FY2025 |
| Disney DTC | $27.2B | $25.5B | +$1.7B | 6.3% | $24.61B | +$1.33B | Disney SEC 10-K FY2025 |
| Apple TV+ DTC | $10.5B | $8.5B | +$2.0B | 19.0% | ~$9.6B | ~+$1.6B | Apple Services estimate |
| WBD Streaming | $10.8B | $9.8B | +$1.0B | 9.3% | ~$9.8B | ~+$0.7B | WBD SEC 8-K Q3 FY2025 |
| Paramount+ | $7.0B | $6.7B | +$0.3B | 4.3% | ~$6.2B | ~+$0.05B | Paramount SEC + estimates |
| Peacock (NBCUniversal) | $5.2B | $5.3B | -$0.1B | -1.9% | ~$4.1B | ~-$0.4B | Comcast Q4 2025 earnings |
DTC segment revenue, expenses, and profits -- key statistics FY2026
Frequently Asked Questions -- DTC segment revenue, expenses, and profits FY2026
Netflix leads all DTC segments with approximately $17 billion in operating income in FY2026 on $51 billion revenue -- a 33.3% operating margin. This is 10x Disney DTC's $1.7 billion and roughly the combined total of all other DTC segments. Netflix's confirmed FY2025 base was $13.33 billion operating income on $45.18 billion revenue (29.5% margin, per Netflix SEC 8-K FY2025). FY2026 reflects guidance for approximately 10% revenue growth and continued margin expansion. Source: Netflix SEC 8-K FY2025, BusinessStats Research FY2026 estimate.
Yes. Disney's DTC segment (Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+) first turned profitable at the DTC level in Q4 FY2023. In FY2025, Disney DTC generated $1.327 billion in operating income on $24.614 billion revenue (5.4% margin), confirmed by Disney SEC 10-K FY2025. For FY2026, Disney DTC operating income is estimated at approximately $1.7 billion on $27.2 billion revenue (6.3% margin). The $1 billion increase in content spend for NBA rights (guided by CEO Bob Iger, November 2025) limits margin expansion despite revenue growth. Source: Disney SEC 10-K FY2025, Hollywood Reporter November 2025.
Netflix's operating margin is estimated at approximately 33.3% in FY2026 ($17 billion operating income on $51 billion revenue). This compares to the confirmed 29.5% in FY2025 ($13.33 billion on $45.18 billion, per Netflix SEC 8-K). Netflix's margin trajectory: approximately 18% (FY2021), 21% (FY2022), 21% (FY2023), 26% (FY2024), 29.5% (FY2025 confirmed), ~33.3% (FY2026 estimate). The consistent improvement reflects operating leverage as the subscriber base grows faster than content spending. Source: Netflix SEC 8-K FY2025, BusinessStats Research.
Peacock is estimated to be near breakeven in FY2026 with approximately $5.2 billion in revenue and $5.3 billion in expenses -- an operating loss of approximately -$0.1 billion. This represents significant improvement from peak losses of approximately -$2.5 billion in FY2023 and -$0.4 billion estimated in FY2025. Comcast has guided toward Peacock profitability. NFL Sunday Night Football, Paris 2024 Olympics content, and WWE Raw have been the primary subscriber and revenue growth drivers. Source: Comcast Q4 2025 earnings, BusinessStats Research FY2026 estimate.
The transformation is dramatic. In FY2022 -- the peak investment phase -- the six major DTC segments combined for approximately -$8.2 billion in operating losses: Disney DTC alone lost approximately -$4 billion, Peacock -$2.5 billion, WBD -$1.5 billion, Paramount+ -$1.5 billion. Only Netflix was profitable. By FY2026, combined DTC operating income reaches approximately +$22 billion -- a swing of $30 billion in four years. This transformation reflects subscriber scale, multiple price increases, advertising revenue, and content cost discipline driven by the post-strike environment. Source: Company SEC filings 2022-2025, BusinessStats Research FY2026.
Disney's DTC content spend for FY2026 is guided at approximately $24 billion -- an increase of $1 billion from FY2025's approximately $23 billion -- driven primarily by NBA rights costs following ESPN's portion of the new $76 billion NBA national TV deal. Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed this on November 13, 2025. This $1 billion increase in content costs is the primary reason Disney DTC's operating margin improvement in FY2026 (+0.9 percentage points to 6.3%) is modest despite $2.6 billion revenue growth. Content spend is approximately 88% of Disney DTC's total estimated expenses. Source: Disney SEC 10-K FY2025, Hollywood Reporter November 2025.
WBD's streaming segment is projected to generate approximately $1.0 billion in operating income in FY2026 on $10.8 billion revenue -- a 9.3% operating margin. This is consistent with WBD's FY2025 guidance of approximately $1.3 billion streaming Adjusted EBITDA, confirmed in WBD SEC 8-K Q3 FY2025. WBD streaming segment revenue includes Max subscription and advertising revenue globally. WBD has guided toward streaming profitability as Max's 128 million subscriber base and ad revenue scale. Source: WBD SEC 8-K Q3 FY2025.
Netflix's 33.3% margin versus Disney DTC's 6.3% reflects four structural differences: (1) Scale -- Netflix's $20B+ content budget is spread across 325M+ subscribers in 190+ countries versus Disney DTC's $24B across Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ serving more limited international markets. (2) Single platform focus -- Netflix operates one integrated platform with no revenue/cost fragmentation. (3) No sports rights escalation -- Netflix's content spend includes some live events but not NFL/NBA at Disney's scale. (4) Longer operating history -- Netflix has been optimising its cost structure since 2007; Disney DTC only launched fully in 2019. Subscriber pricing context in our Disney Plus subscriber count worldwide analysis and TV time share context in our U.S. TV usage share by company analysis.