Joining so many other services in the era of Bidenomics, Warner Bros. Discovery is hiking the subscription rates for its Max streaming service just ahead of the debut of season two of its popular House of the Dragon series, which will drop on June 16.
The price hikes took effect on June 4 and will see the streamer’s ad-free tiers all going up in price. The lowest ad-free tier will go up a dollar a month to $16.99, while the annual lump sum will jump from $149.99 a year to $169.99. Also, the “ultimate” plan will jump to $20.99 a month, or $209 annually — the latter a $10-per-year rise.
The lowest tier, which contains ads, will remain unchanged at $9.99 a month, Variety added.
The new price menu will initially only affect new subscribers. Current monthly subscribers will be given a 30-day notice before the higher prices take effect and yearly subscribers will be able to finish their current subscription period and won’t see the higher prices until renewal time.
The streamer has been struggling to keep its head above water, it seems. Last August, for instance, the service cut about 14 percent of its workforce as it worked to make a profit.
At the time, Max Chief Content Officer Casey Bloys said he hoped the “structural changes will allow us to sustain a thriving business model” going forward.
The company suffered other problems, too. In April, two members of the Warner Bros. Discovery board of directors resigned after they found out they were being investigated by the Department of Justice for possible anti-trust violations.
Despite all the turmoil, financial troubles, and subscription price hikes, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav was handed a huge pay increase with his total compensation reaching $39.3 million annually, skyrocketing a steep 26.5 percent over last year.
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