They were marketed as an alternative to the expensive bundles that cable and satellite were offering. But now, just like their hard-wired counterparts, streaming services DirecTV Now and PlayStation Vue have announced price hikes. Both services will raise their fees by $5/month across all of their tiers.
So that means DirecTV Now’s most basic tier, the “Live a Little” level goes from $35/month to $40. And the others, “Just Right” goes up to $55/month, “Go Big” is now $60/month, and the all-encompassing “Gotta Have It” raised to $70/month.
As for Sony’s PlayStation Vue, their Basic Access tier goes from $39.99 to $44.99/month, Core increases to $49.99/month, Elite to $59.99/month and the Ultra tier up to $79.99/month.
This is in line with Sling TV which also announced a $5/month price increase this week and YouTube TV which hiked its price in March by $5 as well.
PlayStation Vue announced its hike was required to “keep pace with rising business costs and enable us to continue offering a better way to watch the best in live sports, entertainment, and news.” In other words, the networks are charging higher subscriber fees to the streaming services just like their pay TV brethren and the cost has to be passed down to the consumer.
For its part, DirecTV Now owner AT&T gave a statement on why it was increasing its cost to consumers:
”In the 18 months since our launch, we have continued to evolve our DirecTV Now products to serve this new customer set and compare favorably with our competitors. To continue delivering the best possible streaming experience for both new and existing customers, we’re bringing the cost of this service in line with the market — which starts at a $40 price point.”
For those who cut the cord in hopes that they could avoid the constant hiking of their bills, they’re finding that the reality of the per subscriber fee is also hitting streaming services.
PlayStation Vue’s new prices take effect on July 24 while DirecTV Now customers will see their increase on July 26.
About Ken Fang
Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013.
He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television.
Fang celebrates the four Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.