The streaming market has become increasingly competitive with various options including Disney’s Disney Plus and bundles also featuring Hulu and ESPN Plus. Now these particular streaming options are once again facing a price hike as Disney increases the costs of Disney Plus and its bundles.
The streaming plan increases are scheduled to begin in October. They won’t only affect Disney Plus, but also the bundles with Hulu and ESPN Plus that have ads and those that do not. As such, anyone with Disney Plus or its bundle will be affected.
As shared below via Disney‘s support page for Disney Plus, prices will include the following increases on October 21:
- Disney Plus will increase from $9.99 a month to $11.99 a month.
- The Disney Plus and Hulu bundle with ads will increase from $10.99 a month to $12.99 a month.
- The Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN Select bundle with ads will increase from $16.99 a month to $19.99 a month.
- The Disney Plus (without ads), Hulu (without ads), and ESPN Select (with ads) bundle will increase from $26.99 a month to $29.99 a month.
Other changes are listed on the official site, including bundles with HBO Max that will increase from $16.99 a month with ads to $19.99 a month and $29.99 without ads to $32.99 a month. Competition with Disney Plus has been strong in the current streaming market, and the platform recently announced plans to fully merge with Hulu in the following year. This could explain the price hikes, though with several hikes in the last few years, Disney Plus subscribers may not be happy.
As Disney holds a strong market of their own with access to Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar, in addition to the Disney and 20th Century Fox libraries, they do have an edge that they clearly hope will keep subscribers from canceling. Of course, we’ll have to see how their business model works out in the future, especially once Disney Plus and Hulu are completely combined.