Creepin’ up in price.
Disney has decided to up the price of Hulu’s basic content plans by an extra $1 a month.
Starting next month (per their announcement, starting October 8th), the standard “with ads” package will go from $5.99 to $6.99 a month. The “without ads” plan will go from $11.99 to $12.99 a month. Do note, however, that this rate increase doesn’t affect the various bundles; the package with live TV remains $64.99/month with VOD ads; $70.99/month without VOD ads. And the Disney bundle, which packages Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ remains $13.99/month.
The move seems designed to push the Disney bundle, which now has a sweeter pot thanks to these increases. Indeed, that’s the point; CEO Bob Chapek said as much in Disney’s Aug. 12 earnings call. From Variety:
A “good chunk of our marketing now is going toward the bundle,” Disney CEO Bob Chapek said on the company’s Aug. 12 earnings call. He said that’s because “while we enjoy extremely low churn rates on our individual services, the churn rates on the bundle are even lower — surprisingly low even for us.”
This is the first time the ad-free tier for Hulu has increased in price since it was introduced in 2015. And it’s the first time in three years that the entry level plan with ads has increased in cost, since it was slashed from $7.99 to $5.99 in 2019. Disney is naturally focused on the service, as the most recent quarter (which ended July 3rd) was the first time the Hulu turned a profit for the company.
Source: Variety
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