Streaming services like Disney+, Hulu, and Discovery+ plan to increase their subscription rates this month, making entertainment online more expensive.

To be specific, beginning October 3, Discovery+ hiked the price of its ad-free subscription from $6.99 to $8.99 without touching the price of its ad-lite tier at $4.99 in the US, although Canadian users weren't as lucky; the price climbs to $5.99 in the region.


Disney+ also plans a price surge of its premier ad-free service package; from October 12, users will have to pay $13.99 instead of $10.99 per month—equal to $139.99 yearly instead of the present $109.99. However, the basic rate of $7.99 that includes ads and no download option will remain unchanged. It's worth mentioning that this revised pricing will limit streaming to two devices and only up to 1080p resolution, thus, no more 4K.

As for Hulu, also owned by Disney, there will be a $3 increase to the ad-free tier, making it $17.99 from $14.99 starting October 12. No change is expected with the ad-supported version, maintained at $7.99. For those interested in a joint subscription, bundling Disney+ and Hulu is available at $19.88 per month — allowing ad-free access to both.

In other news, Netflix is apparently holding off on its price hike until the SAG-AFTRA strike concludes. The exact timeline and price increase are yet unclear but changes appear imminent. Additionally, essentials like Netflix's password sharing crackdown and removing its basic ad-free plan make cheap deals harder to snatch.

Regarding other streaming platforms, though price hikes are not on the cards just yet, services like Max are pulling down content for cost-cutting, and Prime Video has plans to start airing ads by 2024. How long these platforms sustain their rates remains uncertain.