Netflix is planning to increase the cost of its ad-free tiers, a new report claims.
The subscription rates are expected to go up a few months after the actors’ strike has been settled, according to sources who spoke to the Wall Street Journal. The higher rates will reportedly affect customers in the U.S. and Canada first before rolling out to other markets.
The video streaming giant currently offers two ad-free plans: Standard for $15.49 a month and Premium for $20 a month. It scrapped its ad-free Basic plan earlier this year.
From November 2022, Netflix also started offering an ad-supported plan for $7 a month. The fee for this tier, the most lucrative one for the company, could dodge the upcoming increases, though, at the current time, Netflix is declining to confirm any upcoming changes.
The last time Netflix hiked its subscription fees in the U.S. and other major markets was in early 2022 when Basic increased by $1 a month, Standard by $1.50, and Premium by $2.
It’s not clear how existing customers will respond to the price hike. While many may well roll with it, some could switch to the cheaper ad-supported tier. Others may be tempted to check out rival services or cancel several existing subscriptions to save money.
At least Netflix has the wisdom to hold off on price increases until the actors’ strike is settled, as hiking fees at a time when no fresh content is landing on the streaming service would undoubtedly be hard for some subscribers to swallow.
In related news, Warner Bros. Discovery has announced that the monthly cost of the ad-free version of its Discovery+ streaming service will increase from $6.99 to $8.99, while the cost of its ad-supported plan will remain at $5 a month.
And next week will see increases in the fees for ad-free versions of Disney’s streaming platforms Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.
