The Walt Disney Company is hoping to squeeze more money out of its streaming subscribers by raising prices across its bundled offerings.
On Wednesday, the company announced new pricing for its bundles that pair Disney Plus, Hulu and some versions of its ESPN streaming platform together, as well as a one-off price adjustments for plans associated with Hulu.
The biggest price hikes involves Hulu’s live television service: Hulu with Live TV now costs $100 per month when streamers opt to watch on-demand content with ads or $110 per month to remove ads from on-demand shows and movies. The live TV service includes access to Disney Plus and ESPN Unlimited as part of the plan.
Standalone version of Hulu and Disney Plus with ads will now cost $12.50 per month each, up 50 cents from their prior starting price, while the premium, ad-free versions of Disney Plus and Hulu will cost $21.50 per month, up $2.50. Interestingly, a bundle that pairs the ad-free plans of Disney Plus and Hulu together will only cost $22 per month, an increase of $2 per month but significantly less than if customers purchased the ad-free Disney Plus and Hulu plans separately.
Bundles that pair Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN Unlimited together are not going up in price. The ad-inclusive bundle costs $36 per month, while a version that offers ad-free streaming of Disney Plus and Hulu content costs $45 per month.
The move comes as Disney works to generate more revenue from its streaming content to account for stronger investments in premium shows and sports while also addressing a downturn in cable subscription revenue associated with its traditional TV business.
Disney is also hoping the price hikes on some of its ad-free plans will convince cost-conscious consumers to switch to a lower tier with ads, which allows the company to generate income from a single viewer twice.
Some companies offer included or low-cost access to Disney Plus and Hulu. DIRECTV’s streaming-only service includes access to the two apps in some packages, and Comcast’s StreamSaver bundle sells plans that include Disney Plus and Hulu paired with other services like HBO Max, Netflix, Peacock and Apple TV at varying price points.
