Disney is set to acquire full ownership of Hulu following an additional payment of US$438.7 million to NBCUniversal. This payment was disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing and is part of a contractual appraisal process. The transaction is expected to close on or before July 24, 2025.

The payment will be recorded in Disney's third fiscal quarter of 2025 under 'net income attributable to noncontrolling interests' and will be excluded from Disney's adjusted earnings per share. This additional payment brings the total amount Disney will pay Comcast, NBCUniversal's parent company, for its stake in Hulu to US$9.2 billion.

Initially, in December 2023, Disney paid Comcast US$8.6 billion for NBCUniversal's one-third stake in Hulu. The US$438.7 million payment is less than what Comcast had initially sought. In November 2023, NBCUniversal exercised its right to require Disney to purchase its stake in Hulu, and Disney had set a guaranteed floor value of US$27.5 billion for NBCUniversal's 33% stake.

The companies disagreed on Hulu's fair value, leading to confidential arbitration that began in May 2024. A resolution is expected in 2025. Once the transaction is completed, Disney will fully own Hulu, in addition to its other streaming services, Disney+, ESPN+, and the forthcoming ESPN streaming service.

Bob Iger, CEO of Disney, commented on the resolution, stating, "We are pleased this is finally resolved. We have had a productive partnership with NBCUniversal, and we wish them the best of luck. Completing the Hulu acquisition paves the way for a deeper and more seamless integration of Hulu's general entertainment content with Disney+ and, soon, with ESPN's direct-to-consumer product, providing an unrivalled value proposition for consumers."