NETFLIX on Thursday hiked its monthly fees in the US, sparking outrage from fans on social media.
The firm raised the cost of its standard subscription by $1 a month to $14, and the price for the premium tier rose by $2 per month to $18.
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The standard plan, the company’s most popular, enables two streams at the same time, while the premium plan allows for four simultaneous streams.
The price increase was the first for US customers since January 2019.
A Netflix spokesperson said the company was raising prices “so that we can continue to offer more variety of TV shows and films – in addition to our great fall line up.”
They told The Sun the changes were “only relevant to the US” but did not rule out similar rises in the UK and other markets in future.
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Netflix, the world’s dominant streaming service, enjoyed a boom in subscriptions at the beginning of the year as viewers around the world were told to stay at home to help fight the coronavirus pandemic.
The company expects to end 2020 with more than 200million streaming subscribers around the world, with 73million of those from the United States and Canada.
It also is facing a growing list of competitors including Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.
After the company’s earnings report last week, Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters said Netflix saw an opportunity to increase prices in countries “where we’ve delivered that extra value.”
Netflix’s basic plan, which allows only one stream at a time, will remain at $8 a month in the United States.
Furious users took to Twitter to voice their frustrations at the price hike.
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“Getting close to that ‘cancel Netflix’ price,” one incensed user wrote.
Another said: “Netflix is going up in price next month… WHY!?”
It follows a similar price jump for Netflix’s monthly fees in the UK last year.
In May 2019, the standard package went up by £1 to £8.99 a month, while the premium package rose £2 to £11.99 per month.
Basic packages, which allow viewing on one screen at a time and no HD, stayed the same price, at £5.99.
Netflix said the prices reflected the “significant investments” it had made in new TV shows and films.
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In other news, Netflix earlier this year offered its very first FREE movie that you don’t need an account to watch.
Netflix recently vowed to crack down on users who share logins for the streaming service with their pals or family.
And, here’s how to use a simple Chrome extension to watch Netflix movies with your mates remotely.
What do you think of Netflix’s price hike? Let us know in the comments.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
