APPLE TV is slapping a price increase on all of its customers in just a few days.
Americans will have to pay $12.99 instead of $9.99 to watch things like Severance, The Morning Show and Ted Lasso.
Apple TV has increased its streaming prices[/caption]
The new price hit new customers from August 21, and for existing ones, it kicks in 30 days from their next renewal date.
In a company statement, Apple justified the price increase with the fact that it had continued to roll out new content.
Apple said: “Since its launch, Apple TV+ has expanded its deep library of hundreds of Apple Originals, with thousands of hours of premium programming across genres and brand-new releases weekly – all ad-free.
“Subscribers can explore a rich offering of thrilling dramas, epic sci-fi, feel-good comedies and live sports.”
Apple TV is also ad-free, which makes it the cheapest streaming service that does not offer customers a cheaper plan with ads.
Other streaming services like Netflix offer customers a cheaper subscription plan if they are willing to sit through cable-like ad breaks.
NOT HAPPY
On social media, streamers have reacted poorly to the news of the price hike.
In the comments of a Facebook post, several users called for a boycott of the company.
One person in particular questioned what Apple TV was offering despite the company’s statement.
They wrote: I’m so annoyed. It’s gone up so much the past couple of years.
“I’m trying to figure out why it’s $13 a month. What are they offering that makes it so expensive?!”
Another added, “Stop feeding the greedy.”
The company’s competitor, Netflix, recently hit customers with its own price hike.
Netflix increased the price of the ad-supported plan from $6.99 to $7.99 and the non-ad plan from $15.49 to $17.99.
MONEY PIT
According to a report published in March by The Information, the Apple TV+ subscription plan is losing more than $1 billion per year.
Recent streaming service price hikes
In January, Netflix hiked the prices of its streaming packages from $6.99 to $7.99 for its ad plan and $15.49 to $17.99 for its non-ad plan.
On an earnings call, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters claimed that nothing about its pricing model had changed.
He said: “Our pricing philosophy hasn’t changed. It’s pretty much the same as we’ve talked about for the last several years.”
Peacock, which is owned by Comcast-owned NBCUniversal, recently hiked its prices by $3 for its premium and non-premium plans.
From July 23, customers started paying $10.99 a month for its ad-supported model and $16.99 per month for ad-free.
This affects Peacock’s library of content, including The Office, the Harry Potter saga and reality shows like Love Island.
The publication claimed that the tech giant was spending $4.5 billion on content annually, down from $5 billion in previous years.
Apple is spending money on original TV content like Severance and The Studio, two shows that collectively raked in 15 Emmy wins at the most recent show earlier in September.
At the same time, Apple is spending the big bucks on acclaimed directors like Martin Scorsese in his most recent movie, Killers of the Flower Moon.
Apple is also attracting some of the biggest stars in Hollywood to star in movies for its service.
This includes the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Scarlett Johansson and Mark Wahlberg.
Apple did not respond for comment at the time when asked by the outlet Variety.
Hollywood stars Jennifer Aniston and Steve Carell star in Apple TV’s The Morning show[/caption]
