Netflix will reportedly implement a new subscription price hike starting today. According to CNBC, the move raises the streaming service"s 4K premium plan to $16 from $14. Meanwhile, its basic tier will cost $9 (up from $8) and its HD standard plan $13 (up from $11) following the hike.
Those increases represent the streaming media"s highest price hike since its launch in 2007, amounting to between 13% and 18%. The last time that Netflix raised its subscription fees was in October 2017, after which its share price rose 3%. And that seems to be happening again this time, as Netflix"s shares jumped more than 6% on early Tuesday"s trading following the news.
Those who will subscribe to the service for the first time will immediately see the new price tiers. Fortunately for existing users, they will incur the new price hikes over the next three months.
Netflix is believed to be using the additional fees to subsidize the large sums of money it is injecting into original content and TV shows. Earlier last year, the company announced that it would invest $8 billion in approximately 700 original TV series and movies.
For context, the streaming giant has 58 million subscribers in the United States, and 78 million outside the U.S.
Source: CNBC