Disney Plus, Hulu price hikes announced, ad-supported tier coming in December 2022

Disney Plus had one of the cheapest monthly subscriptions of all the streaming services in the United States, but that’s no longer the case. If you’ve already paid in advance for one year of Disney Plus, you’re safe until your subscription expires, otherwise, come December 2022, you’ll have to pay extra for Disney Plus.

The streaming service confirmed this week that along with the introduction of its new ad-supported tier that will cost $7.99 per month, a price hike will go into effect for its ad-free plan. That means that instead of $7.99, you’ll have to pay $10.99 per month for your Disney Plus subscription.

The price change and the new ad-supported plan will go live on December 8, announced Disney during its Q3 FY22 earning call. Unfortunately, these aren’t the only prices increasing this year.

Two other streaming service under Disney’s umbrella, Hulu and ESPN Plus, will have their subscription prices increase this year. For starters, Hulu’s ad-supported monthly subscription fee will be $7.99 (up from $6.99), while the ad-free plan will go up from $12.99 to $14.99.

On the other hand, ESPN Plus will get a similar $3 increase, so instead of $6.99, you’ll have to pay $9.99 monthly for the service. More importantly, ESPN Plus’ price change will take effect on August 23, so in less than two weeks, whereas the other two services, Disney Plus and Hulu, will have their prices increased from December 8, as we mentioned earlier.

There’s some good news too for those who consider switching to an ad-supported plan. Disney announced that all ad-supported plans will have “lower ad load and frequency to ensure a great experience for viewers.” Also, Disney confirmed that ads will not run on kids profiles at all. (via The Verge)