Disney is set to increase subscription prices for its Disney+ and Hulu services starting October 21, marking the fourth consecutive year of price hikes since Disney+ launched in 2019.
Disney has announced a price increase for its streaming services, Disney+ and Hulu, effective October 21. The standalone Disney+ plan featuring ads will rise by $2, bringing the monthly cost to $11.99. Meanwhile, the no-ads Disney+ Premium plan will see a $3 increase, now costing $18.99 per month. Additionally, the annual Disney+ Premium plan will increase by $30, totaling $189.99 per year.
For Hulu, the standalone plan with ads will increase from $9.99 to $11.99 per month. However, the premium version of Hulu, which does not include ads, will remain at $18.99 per month. The price for ESPN Select will also rise, from $11.99 to $12.99 per month.
The bundled subscription for Disney+ and Hulu with ads will see a $2 increase, now priced at $12.99. The bundle that includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN Select with ads will increase by $3, bringing the total to $19.99. A complete list of the new prices for Disney+ and Hulu bundle plans is available on the company’s support page.
This price hike follows recent controversy surrounding the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show on ABC. Nexstar Media Group, which owns 28 ABC affiliates, decided to pull Kimmel’s show after he made comments deemed “offensive and insensitive” in the wake of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk’s death. Kimmel criticized the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, suggesting they were attempting to distance themselves from the individual responsible for Kirk’s death.
In response to Disney’s handling of the situation, some consumers began canceling their Disney+ subscriptions. According to The New York Times, the “cancel Disney+” campaign led to more subscriber churn than previous boycotts against Netflix over its controversies.
Despite the backlash, a Disney spokesperson clarified to Bloomberg that the price increases had been planned for months and were not related to the Kimmel controversy. Shortly after the announcement, Disney confirmed that Kimmel’s show would return to the air.
Disney had previously hinted at these price increases during its third-quarter earnings call, where it projected a modest rise in Disney+ subscribers for its fourth fiscal quarter. This marks the fourth consecutive year that Disney+ has raised its streaming prices since its launch in 2019. Other streaming services, including Netflix and Peacock, have also announced price increases earlier this year.
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