The Walt Disney Company delivered its best performance in the television marketplace in more than a year, according to Nielsen’s January 2026 Media Distributor Gauge. Disney finished the month with an 11.9% share of total television viewing, marking the largest month-over-month gain among major media distributors, moving up 1.2 share points.
YouTube still held the lead at 12.5%. Disney closed the gap, ending at only .6 percentage points behind YouTube.
The Media Distributor Gauge, part of Nielsen’s monthly viewership tracking, aggregates total television consumption across broadcast, cable, and streaming platforms. Then they present the data to show how media companies stack up in overall viewing share. In January, total TV viewing also reached a 12-month high, reflecting increased audience engagement across multiple genres.
(Disney’s numbers are combined from ESPN, Disney+, Freeform, FX channels, National Geographic, ABC, and Hulu.)
What Drove Disney’s January Gains
Disney’s growth in January was boosted by sports and broadcast programming. ESPN’s coverage of the College Football Playoffs and Championship games was a big part of it, helping to drive an 82% monthly increase in viewership on the sports network. This surge contributed nearly a full percentage point to Disney’s overall TV share.
Another key driver for Disney was the ABC affiliates, which saw a 10% increase in viewing. ABC’s gains came from a mix of NFL games, the Citrus Bowl, ABC World News Tonight, the return of popular broadcast dramas (High Potential), and holiday favorites -New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and The Rose Bowl Parade.
Where Disney Stands in the Market
YouTube maintained its position at the top of the Nielsen ranking for January at 12.5%, followed by Disney at 11.9%, and then Netflix, which secured 8.8% of viewing and remained third among media distributors. Netflix gains were attributed to “Stranger Things.”
Disney’s blend of sports, news, broadcast entertainment, and seasonal programming drove audience engagement across different types of content.
This is a win for Disney as it is closing the gap and catching up to YouTube for viewership dominance.
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