As previously reported by Sports Business Journal, ESPN is increasing the cost of its standalone ESPN Plus streaming service from $6.99 per month to $9.99 per month, a nearly 43% increase, starting on August 23. The yearly plan’s cost is also increasing, from $69.99 to $99.99.
However, the cost of your streaming ESPN subscription will not change if you purchase it as part of the Disney bundle, which combines Disney Plus, ESPN Plus, and ad-supported Hulu for $13.99 per month (Hulu without advertising raises the cost to $19.99 per month). Although the service’s website and support pages have not yet been updated to reflect the price rise, members will be informed next week, according to a statement from Disney spokesperson Paul Melvin.
The price adjustment illustrates how access isn’t as affordable as it once seemed, even while switching between services and bundles is more flexible as we move beyond the typical cable bundle. The cost of ESPN Plus has increased even more since it did so (twice) in the previous year. ESPN notes that in addition to the access to editorial content on its website that members receive, the content partnerships it signs increasingly incorporate ESPN Plus components.
Although Disney’s pricing encourages taking the package, even if that’s not what you truly want, if your ideal is unlimited access to solo sports streaming, it’s both far closer than it has ever been and much further away.