ESPN+ Monthly Subscription to Rise $3 as Disney Strives for Streaming Profits

variety.com:

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorESPN+ is putting an emphasis on the symbol at the end of its name.The Disney-backed streaming-video sports service intends to raise its monthly subscription fee by $3 a month — a 43% price hike that outstrips even the current rate of inflation — and it is doing so at a time when big media companies find the prospect of monetizing new streaming efforts to be significantly more challenging.Starting August 23, 2022, the price of an ESPN+ subscription will rise to $9.99 per month, compared with the current rate of $6.99 per month, and the cost of an annual subscription will rise to $99.99, compared with the current rate of $69.99.

Subscribers to ESPN+ are expected to be notified officially next week. The price of what is known as the “Disney Bundle,” a broader subscription that encompasses ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu, will not change at present, nor will the current price tag for the UFC pay-per-view events ESPN shows.

ESPN last announced a price hike for its streaming service in July of last year, and raised the monthly price to $6.99, compared with $5.99.Other streaming outlets are also searching for new ways to keep cash flowing as consumers have a wider array of choices from which to select — and for which to pay.

Netflix earlier this week unveiled a new partnership with Microsoft to launch an ad-supported tier of its service, and Disney+ is also set to debut a new advertising-supported option.