When brothers Walt and Roy Disney founded their media and entertainment company in 1923, neither of them could have predicted the vast empire it would grow to be. Yet here we are, nearly a century later, and The Walt Disney Company has taken over both big and small screens with its countless movie and television productions, as well as its recent acquisitions of major studios and networks.

Now, Disney has found a way to expand their influence in the media and entertainment industry: Disney+, the official streaming service of The Walt Disney Company.
Released on Nov. 12, Disney+ has quickly proven itself to be a lucrative enterprise for Disney and a formidable competitor of other streaming services. On the day of its launch, Disney+ surpassed 10 million subscribers. In fact, the site crashed on its first day due to the sudden influx of consumers. And while it is difficult to directly compare the success of Disney+ to that of its predecessors such as Netflix and Hulu (who boast roughly 60 million and 28 million U.S. subscribers, respectively), it isn’t hard to imagine the profits the company will incur.

What makes the subscription so enticing? There are several factors involved. First, the sheer number of movies and TV shows available on Disney+ alone are enough to lure in viewers. Thanks to its ownership of major entertainment studios such as Marvel, Pixar, and 21st Century Fox, Disney is able to provide a wide variety of on-screen entertainment on its streaming service. Disney can also take many creative liberties when it comes to original shows and spinoffs, such as the highly popular series The Mandalorian (which stems from the Star Wars film series).

In addition, the power of nostalgia cannot be ignored. Disney has been around for decades, and most people today grew up watching classics like The Little Mermaid or Cinderella, as well as TV shows of the late ‘90s and 2000s, such as Wizards of Waverly Place or Lizzie McGuire. With these movies and shows now readily available to watch and rewatch, people have the chance to transport themselves back to the good ol’ days.
Now here’s the real question, the question that every consumer is searching for the answer to: is it worth it?
In my opinion, it absolutely is.

My sisters and I are all huge Disney fans, and Disney+ opens the door to an entirely new realm of entertainment for us. The first thing we watched on the site was an episode of The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Our watch list is full of movies that we have been wanting to watch for so long yet could never find a proper place to watch them. Confession time: I’ve never seen a single Star Wars film, nor have I seen any of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. But all that is about to change with Disney+; I’m already planning movie marathon nights for both series. Speaking of marathons, a Marvel marathon is now super convenient and definitely on my to-do list. And speaking of Marvel, there are so many spinoff series in the works that I am extremely excited about, including Loki and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Of course, not everyone has the same interests as I do. But that doesn’t mean they won’t find something for them on Disney+. For those who prefer information-driven content, there are nature documentaries (courtesy of both Disneynature and National Geographic). For those who are yearning for some old nostalgia, there are movies from the ‘50s and ‘60s, such as The Sound of Music and the iconic Mary Poppins. The site will also have all of Disney’s live-action remakes, along with the original animated versions, in case a side-by-side comparison is needed.

Clearly, there is something on Disney+ for all ages and all interests.