Disney+ To Raise Prices, Ad-Free Version Will Soon Cost $10.99
The magic of Disney is going to be a little more expensive in a few months. Ahead of their company-wide Q3 earnings call, Disney announced that their streaming platforms, including Disney+, will be receiving price increases. While these hikes won't immediately affect customers, they will become fairly significant when they do go into effect.
Along with the price increase will be a new ad-supported version of Disney+. While currently ad-free, there have long been discussions about creating a separate version of the streamer that supports ads for a cheaper price. That version of the service will officially launch on December 8, 2022, and will cost $7.99 a month. As for the version without ads, that will cost $10.99 per month starting in December — a three-dollar difference from its current price.
"With our new ad-supported Disney+ offering and an expanded lineup of plans across our entire streaming portfolio, we will be providing greater consumer choice at a variety of price points to cater to the diverse needs of our viewers and appeal to an even broader audience," Kareem Daniel, Disney's media and entertainment distribution chairman, wrote in a statement.
How other streaming platforms will be affected
Of course, Disney+ is not the only Disney-operated streaming platform that will be affected by these price hikes. The company also owns Hulu and ESPN+, the subscriptions of which can be purchased separately or through a bundle with Disney+. These bundles are expected to increase in price, although the completely ad-free bundle will remain at $19.99 a month.
According to the statement, Hulu with ads will soon cost $7.99 a month, a one-dollar increase from the current $6.99 price point, while the premium ad-free version will cost $14.99, bumping the price up by two dollars per month compared to the current rate. These prices will go into effect on October 10. As for ESPN+, The Hollywood Reporter wrote in July that the price for the sports-focused streamer will jump from $6.99 to $9.99 a month starting on August 23, 2022.