Disney’s Latest Streaming Price Hike Is My Final Straw
Everything is getting more expensive and something’s gotta change.
I’ve been a subscriber of the Disney Bundle since it was first launched in 2019. Since then, Disney has raised the price a few times and I never really thought twice about whether or not to keep the service, until now. On Tuesday, Disney announced that in October, it would be raising the price of nearly every single streaming service and bundle that it offers, and this is going to be the final straw in my current bundle.
In the beginning, I subscribed to the bundle with Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+, despite having no need for ESPN+ as we don’t really watch many sports at home. I’ve kept the bundle because my daughter loves to watch shows on Disney+ and my wife and I use Hulu here and there when there’s nothing else we want to watch. As streaming services continue to increase their prices, it makes it harder and harder to financially justify having a bunch of them that you don’t use all the time.
Back when the bundles first launched, I was paying $7.99 per month for the three services, which was an amazing value. At that price, it didn’t matter whether I used ESPN+ or not, because the monthly price was so cheap. Then, it went up to $10.99 per month, and then it jumped up to $13.99 monthly. With the price increase that will hit this fall, Disney will now be charging $16.99 per month for the Trio bundle, which is a 112.64% increase in price over the five years since it was released.
I understand that Disney kept the price low initially to build its subscriber base and that, eventually, all things get more expensive and that there are tons of costs associated with these things. But, it doesn’t feel like Disney has done a very good job of keeping its value proposition over the years. Between the addition of ads; the insane price history; and the slow, strike-impacted release of originals, it’s just not the kind of product that I can justify the monthly cost of anymore.
Currently, we subscribe to YouTube TV for our live streaming needs and have the Disney Bundle along with Peacock. YouTube TV is something we watch regularly, and while I don’t really love the monthly price point, it currently meets our needs. We pay for the monthly Peacock subscription almost exclusively to watch “The Office” and “The Office: SuperFan” episodes (along with some “Parks and Recreation”). Honestly, I’d handle a price increase on Peacock better than another hike on Disney+.
Luckily, I have a few months to decide whether I’ll cancel all of Disney’s streaming services or just downgrade to a Disney+ (ad-supported)-only subscription for my daughter. Disney has confirmed that the new bundle with Disney+, Hulu, and Max won’t be receiving a price increase, which could be another alternative for me, but I am worried that a price hike for that bundle won’t be far behind either and I don’t want to have to go through this same song and dance again in a few months.
Will you be canceling your Disney+ subscription or just taking the price hike and rolling with it? Let us know your thoughts on X/Twitter.
Disney+
Disney+ is a video streaming service with over 13,000 series and films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, The Muppets, and more. It is available in 61 countries and 21 languages. It is notable for its popular original series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ms. Marvel,” “Loki,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Andor.”