Disney might be trying to put the Jimmy Kimmel Live fiasco to bed by bringing the show back[1] on Tuesday night (good luck with that[2]). But the company isn’t exactly putting itself back in customers’ good graces. Once again[3], it’s hiking the prices of Disney+ subscriptions in the US.
Several standalone plans and bundles are getting price increases[4]. The changes come into effect on October 21.
After that date, subscribers will be paying $2 extra for the standard Disney+ plan (the one with ads) at $12 per month. The ad-free Disney+ Premium option will soon cost $19 per month, an increase of $3. For those playing along at home, that means the monthly ad-free Disney+ plan will have nearly tripled in price in the six years that the service has been around[5].
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Bundle price increases are as follows:
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Disney+ and Hulu with ads: currently $11 per month, going up by $2 to $13
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Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Select with ads: currently $17 per month, going up by $3 to $20
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Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Select Premium (ad-free): currently $27 per month, going up by $3 to $30
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Disney+ Premium (ad-free), Hulu and ESPN Select (both with ads): currently $22 per month, going up by $3 to $25 — note that this is a legacy plan for existing subscribers, and it’s not possible to switch to it
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Disney+, Hulu and HBO Max Basic with ads: currently $17 per month, going up by $3 to $20
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Disney+ Premium, Hulu Premium and HBO Max (No Ads): currently $30 per month, going up by $3 to $33
Ad-free Hulu Premium ($19 per month) and the ad-free Disney+ and Hulu Premium bundle ($20 per month) are not changing in price for now. The Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Unlimited bundles are remaining the same too, at $36 with ads on all three services and $45 with ad-free Disney+ Premium and Hulu Premium. The company will combine Disney+ and Hulu[6] into the same app next year, but there will still be standalone plans for each service.
Disney is following Apple[7] and Peacock[8] in raising prices of their streaming services over the last couple of months. But the timing of the Disney+ increase is an especially ill-judged one.
The announcement comes amid many subscribers canceling their plans[9] in protest against Disney’s decision to temporarily remove Jimmy Kimmel from its airwaves. A price hike isn’t exactly likely to entice them to sign back up as Kimmel’s show returns to ABC.
References
- ^ bringing the show back (www.msnbc.com)
- ^ good luck with that (variety.com)
- ^ Once again (www.engadget.com)
- ^ getting price increases (help.disneyplus.com)
- ^ has been around (www.engadget.com)
- ^ combine Disney+ and Hulu (www.engadget.com)
- ^ Apple (www.bbc.com)
- ^ Peacock (www.engadget.com)
- ^ many subscribers canceling their plans (www.usatoday.com)