share_log

Paramount+ Wants You To Shell Out More For Watching Starting In August, Even If You Stream It With Ads — Here's What You Need To Know

Benzinga ·  Jun 25 12:53

Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) has announced a price hike for most of its Paramount+ subscription plans, effective from August.

What Happened: The ad-free Paramount+ With Showtime plan will see a $1 increase, bringing the monthly cost to $12.99. The Paramount+ Essential plan, which includes ads, will rise by $2 to $7.99 per month for new subscribers. The new prices will come into effect on Aug. 20 for new customers, reported Variety.

For existing Paramount+ With Showtime subscribers, the new price will be effective from their next billing date on or after Sept. 20. The monthly subscribers to Paramount+ Essential will continue at the current price of $5.99.

The annual subscription plans for both tiers will remain unchanged, that is Paramount+ bundled with Showtime at $119.99 per year, while Paramount+ Essential at $59.99 per year. The price of the legacy Paramount+ Limited Commercial plan will also increase by $1 to $7.99 per month.

These changes come after the company's controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, called off discussions about merging the company with David Ellison's Skydance Media earlier this month.

Subscribe to the Benzinga Tech Trends newsletter to get all the latest tech developments delivered to your inbox.

Why It Matters: Despite the price increase, the new cost of Paramount+ With Showtime remains lower than the ad-free versions of Netflix, Disney+, and Warner Bros. Discovery's Max. Earlier this month, Warner Bros. Discovery increased the price of Max's no-ads plans in the U.S.

Last week, actress Sydney Sweeney was alleged to be using a pirated streaming service to watch "NBC's Law & Order: Organised Crime." At the time, fans expressed their understanding, citing the continuous increase in subscription prices.

In April, Paramount Global announced first-quarter revenue of $7.685 billion, marking a 6% year-over-year increase. However, this figure fell short of the Street's consensus estimate of $7.732 billion, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Check out more of Benzinga's Consumer Tech coverage by following this link.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

The above content is for informational or educational purposes only and does not constitute any investment advice related to Futu. Although we strive to ensure the truthfulness, accuracy, and originality of all such content, we cannot guarantee it.
    Write a comment