Is ESPN+ Really Raising Prices?
TV Answer Man, I heard that ESPN+ is raising its price.  Henry, Butte, Montana. Henry, Im sorry to inform you that ESPN+, the streaming edition of the sports network, will raise its monthly price on August 13 from $5.99 to $6.99. The annual price, if you decide to pay that way, will increase from $59.99 a year to $69.99 a year. (Youll save roughly $14 over the year if you pay annually.) The good news is that the Disney Bundle, which consists of Disney+, ESPN+ and the ad-included version of Hulu, will stay at $13.99 a month. That should tell you something about Disneys agenda here. The company is trying to prod more people to take the bundle rather than subscribe to an individual service. Click Amazon: See the 1-Day-Only Discounts! ESPN+ last raised its monthly price in August 2020 when it increased from $4.99 a month to $5.99 a month. However, the sports streamer last January hiked its annual rate from $49.99 to $59.99. The latest ESPN+ price boost follows other fee hikes from streamers in 2021 including ones from Disney+ and Sling TV. And its likely more price increases are coming later in the year. While theres a perception among some consumers (and journalists) that streaming should be cheaper, the cost of program acquisition continues to rise, forcing companies to raise subscriber rates to keep up. This is the same reason why cable and satellite services have had to raise their prices over the last several years, and the streamers are not immune to the problem. Its inevitable that consumers will have to pay as much, or more, for streaming than they have for the traditional pay TV services. As The Who sang in the classic 1971 rocker, Wont Get Fooled Again:  Meet the new boss; same as the old boss. Henry, hope that makes sense. Happy viewing, and stay safe! Please buy it using one of the Amazon.com links on this page. This site receives a small portion of each purchase, which helps us continue to provide these articles. Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvpredictions.com. Please include your first name and hometown in your message.  Phillip Swann  Share this: Twitter  Facebook