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ESPN has made its standalone streaming subscription service a focal point for content in recent years. And soon you’ll have to pay more for it.
The service, ESPN+, is going up in price beginning in August 2021. Here are the details.
ESPN recently announced that the price for the ESPN+ streaming service will increase on August 13, 2021.
It will go up $1 per month and $10 per year for an annual subscription.
Here’s a breakdown of the upcoming changes:
| Monthly Subscription | Annual Subscription | |
| Old Pricing (Available through August 12, 2021) | $5.99 | $59.99 |
| New Pricing (Beginning August 13, 2021) | $6.99 | $69.99 |
Unfortunately, this change is for both new and existing subscribers.
So if you’re not already subscribed, there’s no need to rush to sign up to lock in the current pricing. And if you are an existing subscriber, you can expect your bill to increase on your first due date on or after August 13.
If you’re already subscribed to ESPN+ through the popular bundle package with Disney+ and Hulu, you won’t see an increase in your monthly bill.
You can get all three streaming services for $13.99 per month. The regular price for Disney+ is $7.99, and Hulu (ad-supported, on-demand) is $5.99. So if you subscribe to both of these popular video streaming services, you’ll still be getting ESPN+ for what is, effectively, $1 extra per month.
The price of this bundle went up earlier this year (from $12.99 per month to $13.99 per month), so it’s a good guess that the pricing-powers-that-be determined another increase this soon would be received poorly by existing customers.
It wouldn’t surprise me if they eventually try to move the monthly price for this bundle up another dollar in the future.
While ESPN+ is a great way to get some ESPN content at a discounted rate, it’s not exactly the same as getting the ESPN networks without paying for cable.
You’ll find that the games and shows broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNews usually aren’t included with your ESPN+ subscription. Instead, you’ll get games and content that are designed specifically for this streaming service.
For example, ESPN recently signed a new contract with the NHL that makes ESPN+ the streaming home for more than 1,000 regular season hockey games beginning this October. Some of these games will air on ESPN’s family of networks, but many of them will be available only to ESPN+ subscribers.
The NHL is not the only major sports league that has a large chunk of content available on ESPN+.
You’ll also see live sports from the following leagues on the streaming service:
You’ll also get access to the full library of ESPN’s popular “30 for 30” documentary series.
With ESPN’s announcement about its acquisition of NHL programming, a price increase was not unexpected.
As the network continues to add to the live sports that will air exclusively on ESPN+, sports fans can expect the pricing to continue to increase over time.
It’s safe to say that fans who have already found value in the live sports won’t be happy about the price increase they’ll see in August, but it’s probably not a big enough hike to spark mass cancellations, either.
As more people move towards cutting the cord on traditional cable TV, the importance of services like ESPN+ will become prominent in the sports world.
Even at $7.99 per month, you can still argue this service offers great value to sports fans who have cut the cord.
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This post was last modified on July 15, 2021 1:02 pm
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