Disney will increase the price of Disney+ subscriptions in the North American market

Disney announced in its recent quarterly financial report that it will increase the subscription cost for Disney+ in North America from October 12th. The ad-free subscription plan will rise to $13.99, and the company is also rethinking its account-sharing usage model.

Currently, Disney has not explicitly stated whether it will target the prevailing account-sharing usage pattern. However, it is anticipated that the company will adopt a practice similar to Netflix, imposing additional charges for non-cohabiting family and friends to prevent account-sharing abuses.

As for this latest increase in the ad-free subscription plan’s pricing, it marks a cumulative rise of $12 since last year’s announced hike. While there has been no confirmation of a similar increase in regions outside North America, the current trend of rising costs for streaming video services suggests that it’s only a matter of time.

Presently, Disney+ boasts a subscription base of 46 million people in North America. Including the Disney+ Hotstar subscription plan, the international market reaches 59.7 million users. The Disney+ Core subscription has an even more impressive 157 million subscribers, with the Disney+ Hotstar plan accounting for 40.4 million, ESPN+ at 25.2 million, and Hulu’s overall subscription numbers reaching 48.3 million.

From a broader financial perspective, Disney’s sales revenue for the last quarter amounted to $22.33 billion, a growth of 4% compared to the same period last year. However, the actual revenue presented a loss of $1.34 billion, and the net loss was even more pronounced at $4.6 billion.