Netflix announced today that it is raising the price of its streaming video service by 13 to 18 Percent in the United States. This isn’t the first time it’s raised prices, but this is its biggest price increase ever. And it’s the first time a price increase has impact all Netflix users.
“We change pricing from time to time as we continue investing in great entertainment and improving the overall Netflix experience,” a Netflix statement notes, seemingly blaming the price hike on its continued support of original content.
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The price change will vary by subscription tier. Those currently paying $11 per month for Netflix’s most popular tier—which lets you see HD content on two different devices at the same time—will see their payment rise to $13 per month. The cheapest plan is jumping from $8 per month to $9. And a premium plan with 4K/HDR content and multiple device support is moving from $14 per month to $16.
Netflix says that the new prices are effective immediately for all new subscribers. Existing subscribers will see the price increase in the next three months. After that, it will head international, starting with certain Latin America countries.
Netflix spent over $3 billion on original content in 2018 and expects to do so again in 2019. At last tally, it had 79 million subscribers in the U.S. But the firm will post its latest quarterly results in two days, so we should get a new number then.
bharris
<p>I don't care….If I can watch it 10 to 15 hours a month and enjoy it, I think it's still cheap entertainment. Not saying "Yay! I get to send NetFlix more money!" but I'm not going to lose any sleep over it either….</p>