ESPN+ is getting a $3 price hike on Aug. 23.
The Walt Disney Company plans to raise the price of its streaming sports platform from $6.99 to $9.99 a month starting next month, according to Bloomberg. Annual subscriptions will also increase from $69.99 to $99.99.
As ESPN told Bloomberg, the 43% increase reflects the "growing amount of live sports and original programming" on its service. Subscribers can expect an official notice next week.
One of Disney's three flagship streaming brands—alongside Disney+ and Hulu—ESPN+ debuted in 2018 at $4.99 a month. As more live sports rights were acquired, more dollars were added to the price, which reached $5.99 a month in August 2020 and increased again to $6.99 in July 2021.
Now boasting more than 22,000 live pro and college sports events (everything from auto racing to tennis), as well as archival footage, original documentaries, and access to premium material on ESPN.com, the platform has attracted more than 22 million regular subscribers.
As Bloomberg points out, Disney is clearly hoping that this latest price hike will tempt more consumers to opt for its streaming bundle, which includes access to ESPN+, Disney+, and Hulu for $13.99 per month. That's now only $4 more than an ESPN+ subscription, but with two additional services attached.
Meanwhile, Netflix's tactic for bolstering subscriber numbers is to embrace ads, and last week picked Microsoft to provide them as part of a cheaper subsction tier.