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Disney to increase cost of Disney Plus, Hulu in December

(Video frames courtesy the Walt Disney Company, animation by The Desk)

The Walt Disney Company says it will increase the price of its flagship streaming service Disney Plus and general entertainment service Hulu later this year.

Starting December 8, customers who want the ad-free version of Disney Plus will have to fork over $11 a month, up from the current price of $8 a month. That same day, Disney says it will introduce an ad-supported version of Disney Plus that costs $8 a month — so customers who don’t want to pay more for the service will have to tolerate advertisements.

Disney says Hulu will also see a price increase across its two tiers of service. The ad-supported version of Hulu is increasing to $8 a month; currently, it costs $7 a month. The commercial-free version of Hulu will jump to $15 a month, up from the current price of $13 a month.

Customers who want Disney Plus and Hulu can save a little money by taking advantage of a new bundle that will roll out in early December. The Disney Plus with Hulu bundle will cost $10 a month, with both services offering advertisements. That bundle will not include ESPN Plus, the sports-centric streaming service that Disney owns.

The bundle will supplement one Disney has offered for several years now that incorporates Hulu, Disney Plus and ESPN Plus into a single subscription. That bundle will increase to $15 a month, up from its current rate of $14 a month.

The price increases are intended to help Disney offset operating losses across its three subscription streaming services. On Wednesday, Disney said its operating loss was $1.1 billion during its most-recent quarter, up from $293 million last year.

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is an award-winning journalist with more than 10 years of experience covering the business of television and radio broadcasting, streaming services and the overall media industry. In addition to his work as publisher of The Desk, Matthew contributes regularly to StreamTV Insider and KnowTechie, and has worked for several well-known news organizations, including Thomson Reuters, McNaughton Newspapers, Grasswire, Comstock's magazine, KTXL-TV and KGO-TV. Matthew is a member of IRE, a trade organization for investigative reporters and editors, and is based in Northern California.

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