Disney has announced that the cost of some of its various streaming service bundles will be increasing, as controversy around the brief suspension of Jimmy Kimmel, Live! continues.
The company revealed that from October 21, the price of various packages that include Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN will be going up.
According to the Disney+ website, the price of standalone Disney+ with ads service is rising from $9.99 to $11.99 per month, while the Disney+ Premium – without ads – is rising from $15.99 to $18.99 per month.
The Hulu standalone plan with ads is increasing from $9.99 to $11.99/month as of the same date; the premium version of Hulu with no ads will remain at $18.99 per month.
A Disney+, Hulu Bundle, which includes both services with ads will go up from $10.99 to $12.99, while the Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle, will soon be $19.99, up from $16.99.
The premium versions of those two bundles – all services without ads – will be $19.99 and $29.99 respectively, as of October 21.
Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle plans are also set to increase, with the regular package which includes all three services increasing to $19.99 per month, and the premium package up to $32.99.
The Independent has reached out to Disney for comment about the price hikes. A spokesperson declined to comment when reached by Variety.
The price increase to the U.S. streaming services is the third time in three years, following hikes in October 2024 and 2023, and comes amid the fallout from suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show by Disney and ABC.
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Kimmel’s show was pulled off air “indefinitely” following comments he made about the shooting death of MAGA commentator Charlie Kirk, which resulted in outrage from those on the right as well as the chair of the Federal Communications Commission Brendan Carr.
ABC announced Monday that Kimmel would return to air Tuesday night.
His brief suspension caused outrage with many customers threatening to cancel their Disney+ subscriptions over the furore. Multiple celebrities spoke out in support of Kimmel including Ben Stiller, Jean Smart, and Marvel actress Tatiana Maslany, who urged people online to cancel their subscriptions.
Fellow late-night talk show hosts including Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert and John Oliver have also expressed solidarity with Kimmel.
On Sunday’s episode of Oliver’s Last Week Tonight, he encouraged viewers to “exert pressure” on Disney by canceling their subscriptions for the company’s apparent refusal “to protect freedom of speech.”
Protests against the suspension have also taken place outside the studio where Kimmel’s show is filmed on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles.
