Disney hiking price of ESPN+ subscription to $7 a month
Disney is set to hike the monthly subscription fee for ESPN+ by one dollar, though the bundle that includes the sports streaming service will remain the same price.
Credit: Disney
In August 2021, ESPN+ will cost $7 a month, up from $6. The move mirrors a similar price hike for the Disney+ streaming service back in December 2020.
According to Deadline, the price for Disney's bundle that includes Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu will remain unchanged. Similarly, Disney won't raise the prices of its pay-per-view UFC rights.
During its most recent earnings report, Disney said that ESPN+ had 13.8 million subscribers. However, the company didn't reveal how many of those customers subscribed to a bundle instead of the ESPN+ service alone.
ESPN+ launched in April 2018 with a $5-a-month price tag. At the time, it had a limited number of live offerings for viewers, though it has since added more programming.
Disney is said to be one of the biggest bidders for the NFL Sunday Ticket deal. The current deal is set to expire after 2022 and the NFL is looking for a streaming partner. Current contenders include Disney and Apple, although the latter company is reportedly not seen to be as serious as others.
Apple, which has not raised the price of its Apple TV+ streaming service since launch, has yet to break into live sports programming. The Cupertino tech giant has expressed interest in the space in the past, however.
Keep up with everything Apple in the weekly AppleInsider Podcast -- and get a fast news update from AppleInsider Daily. Just say, "Hey, Siri," to your HomePod mini and ask for these podcasts, and our latest HomeKit Insider episode too.If you want an ad-free main AppleInsider Podcast experience, you can support the AppleInsider podcast by subscribing for $5 per month through Apple's Podcasts app, or via Patreon if you prefer any other podcast player.
Credit: Disney
In August 2021, ESPN+ will cost $7 a month, up from $6. The move mirrors a similar price hike for the Disney+ streaming service back in December 2020.
According to Deadline, the price for Disney's bundle that includes Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu will remain unchanged. Similarly, Disney won't raise the prices of its pay-per-view UFC rights.
During its most recent earnings report, Disney said that ESPN+ had 13.8 million subscribers. However, the company didn't reveal how many of those customers subscribed to a bundle instead of the ESPN+ service alone.
ESPN+ launched in April 2018 with a $5-a-month price tag. At the time, it had a limited number of live offerings for viewers, though it has since added more programming.
Disney is said to be one of the biggest bidders for the NFL Sunday Ticket deal. The current deal is set to expire after 2022 and the NFL is looking for a streaming partner. Current contenders include Disney and Apple, although the latter company is reportedly not seen to be as serious as others.
Apple, which has not raised the price of its Apple TV+ streaming service since launch, has yet to break into live sports programming. The Cupertino tech giant has expressed interest in the space in the past, however.
Keep up with everything Apple in the weekly AppleInsider Podcast -- and get a fast news update from AppleInsider Daily. Just say, "Hey, Siri," to your HomePod mini and ask for these podcasts, and our latest HomeKit Insider episode too.If you want an ad-free main AppleInsider Podcast experience, you can support the AppleInsider podcast by subscribing for $5 per month through Apple's Podcasts app, or via Patreon if you prefer any other podcast player.
Comments
Got it.
In the past few days I watched both the men's and women's Wimbledon finals live as well as some of the semi-final matches and the Euro 2020 semi-finals and championship match. ESPN certainly continues to broadcast compelling sports events to the sports fan with wide interests.
If your interests are very limited, I can see how you might find the content that you aren't interested in as a drag. But over the decades, ESPN has basically evolved as viewers' interests have changed. That's why they remain a major sports broadcaster and are able to secure large TV contracts for some of the world's biggest sporting events.
ESPN also maintains a long tradition of hosting a bunch of irrelevant content, like 75% of all NCAA bowl games. There are about 30 bowl games and maybe 4-5 are meaningful as athletic contests.
I agree...until the main ESPN channels are included, EPSN+ is not worth even $1/month.
In the years I had ESPN+, I only used it for that reason. Honestly, I couldn't figure out what good it was for beyond that, so clearly I would never pay $7/mo.
https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/04/19/how-disneys-espn-makes-money-sports-broadcasting.aspx
So it is not just about - if you do not like it do not watch it.