One of the latest trends is for cable networks to offer an ad free on-demand experience. Some of the more popular have been AMC Premiere, Lifetime Movie Club, History Vault, and FX+ — which started as options for cable customers, but then made their way to Live TV Streaming Services and as direct subscriptions.
Today, FX, which was acquired by Disney as part of their purchase of 21st Century Fox, announced that their FX+ service will be discontinued starting on August 21st. FX+ was $5.99 a month and included 1,400 episodes of FX Originals, ad free, plus early access to new shows before they premiere. The service included current shows from FX, FXX, and FXM like Atlanta and The Americans, as well as old favorites like Rescue Me and The League.
In a message to customers:
Current subscribers can access past seasons of FX and FXX originals through August 20, 2019 in the FXNOW app or online at www.FXNetworks.com. After that date, past seasons of FX and FXX originals will no longer be accessible through an FX+ subscription.
The assumption is that the shut down of the service has to do with the upcoming launch of Disney+, which will see some of the content from FX like The Simpsons become available ad-free on the service. Other shows will likely be made available on Disney-owned, Hulu, which is available for $5.99 with ads or $11.99 without them.
Customers will continue to be able to watch FX Networks original series on the FX and FXX linear channels and be available for limited time on-demand viewing in the FXNOW app or online at www.FXNetworks.com.