(NEXSTAR) — In what feels like an annual trend, Netflix is getting more expensive.
Last month, the streaming giant told shareholders it would be raising prices on some of its subscription plans. At the time, Netflix said the adjustments would be “starting today,” impacting both new and existing customers.
The changes did not, however, seem to take effect that day, October 18. Users reported paying the same amount in October and even this month, not the newly set prices.
Netflix does however list the new prices on its website, affecting new subscribers.
Netflix has three pricing tiers available to customers: An option with ads, “Standard” and “Premium.” Some customers are also grandfathered into a “Basic” plan, but it’s not an option people can choose now. More expensive tiers allow customers to stream on more devices and add members in other households.
The new price hike is hitting Netflix’s “Basic” and “Premium” tiers. Each option is now $2 more expensive than it used to be, $11.99 for “Basic” and $22.99 for “Premium.”
The pricing of Netflix’s cheapest option, which includes ads, will remain at $6.99 and the “Standard” tier will stay at $15.49.
Netflix users on impacted plans say they began receiving emails this week notifying them of the changes, which are reportedly coming in early December.
Netflix didn’t immediately respond to Nexstar’s request for comment.
The company has defended its price hikes in the past, calling their starting price — the $6.99 “Standard with ads” plan — “extremely competitive” and “much less than the average price of a single movie ticket.”
When it raised its prices in early 2022, Netflix said the increase was necessary so they could “continue to offer a wide variety of quality entertainment options.”
As expected, the newest price hike hasn’t been well received.
“Thats [sic] all netflix does anymore, less content and endlessly raising the prices,” one user on Reddit wrote.
“You raised prices last March, and I wake up to an email notification that now you’re raising them AGAIN? Read the room, man,” an X (formerly Twitter) user wrote. Others called for Netflix to add better content to its library.
In October, the company revealed it had earned $1.68 billion, or $3.73 per share, a 20% increase from the same time last year while revenue climbed 8% to $8.54 billion.
Netflix has picked up more than 16 million subscribers through the first nine months of the year, already eclipsing the 8.9 million subscribers that it added all of last year. The increase is arguably tied to the company’s recent efforts to crack down on password sharing, forcing people who were sharing an account across many households to start paying more. The streamer told shareholders the effort has been working.
“The cancel reaction continues to be low, exceeding our expectations, and borrower households converting into full-paying memberships are demonstrating healthy retention,” the company said.
Revenue in the third quarter was ultimately in line with expectations, Netflix said, despite a “challenging” six months that included a WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike.
In an apparent effort to rebuild its library of original programming after everyone returns to work, Netflix said it expects to spend about $17 billion on TV series and films next year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
