Jordan O'BrienNetflix users in the UK have been spared a price increase for some time, while those in the US have endured increase after increase over recent years. Unfortunately, Brits have got away with paying too little for too long, with Netflix confirming that prices will increase for UK users by up to 20%.
Those who only want access to Netflix’s entire catalogue on one device and in standard definition have nothing to fear about the price increase. In order to entice users to join without committing a large chunk of change each month, Netflix has kept its lowest priced plan at the same price – £5.99. Of course, the basic plan was never the most popular plan to begin with, and it serves as an excellent low-cost option for those wishing to try Netflix before upgrading to a more expensive plan and all the bells and whistles that come with it.
The biggest price increase comes at the expense of those who were already paying the most – users with access to Netflix on four devices and in Ultra HD. The price of the premium plan will increase by 20%, with those currently paying £9.99 expected to stump up an extra £2. While £11.99 is more expensive than Brits are used to paying for the premium plan, those in the US have long paid more. Even at today’s appalling exchange rate, US users pay around £12.67 a month for it.
Sitting in the middle is the standard plan, which allows users to stream Netflix on two devices at the same time in high definition. This will see a modest price increase of £1 to £8.99, but will affect the most people as it’s the most popular plan.
Netflix has 10 million UK subscribers, but only new users will be lumped with the price increase straight away. Existing subscribers will have a few weeks reprieve before they’ll start seeing the increase.
An increase in Netflix subscription prices has been a long time coming. The company is spending significant sums of money on content, with it set to spend an estimated $15 billion in 2019, and it shows no sign of slowing down. In order to continually increase the amount it can spend on content, Netflix is forced to raise prices, although the service now looks expensive compared to Disney’s upcoming streaming service, Disney+. That service is expected to launch later this year for $6.99 a month in the US, and will be stocked with premium content from brands such as Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, Fox and Disney.