Just as Peacock is ready to debut a brand-new package of NBA games, the NBC-owned streaming service will significantly raise its prices.
According to a report by Josef Adalian in Vulture, Peacock is set to raise the price of its ad-supported plan by nearly 40% starting July 23. The new price of Peacock’s ad tier will be $10.99 per month, up from the current price of $7.99 per month. The price hike comes just one year after Peacock raised the price of its ad-supported tier by $2 per month, from $5.99 to the current $7.99 price point. For users opting for the ad-free tier, the price will increase from $13.99 per month to $16.99 per month.
The reason for the hike? The cost of live sports. NBC will be paying over $2 billion per year for its new NBA package, which will feature weekly Peacock-exclusive games. In addition, Peacock hosts several other exclusive sporting events, including Big Ten football and basketball, an NFL game each season, the Olympics, and much more.
Within one year, Peacock has gone from one of the most affordable streaming services on the market to one of the most expensive. However, compared to its competitors, Peacock houses substantially more content in the live sports department. As NBCUniversal exec Mark Marshall told advertisers in May, “Peacock was built on sports. … [The platform] will have over 7,500 hours of sports in the next year alone — more than Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, Hulu, Max, Apple TV, and Netflix combined.”
Those hours of programming don’t come cheap.
For non-sports fans, Peacock will be offering a more affordable package called Peacock Select, which will be priced at $7.99 per month but won’t include live sports or any Peacock originals (like Love Island).
No doubt, the price increase will be met with considerable angst from fans who feel they’re being taken advantage of by streamers left and right. And they are. Apple TV+, Hulu, Netflix, Disney+, and most other streaming services have increased prices in recent years. As live sports rights continue to fragment across various services, sports fans bear the brunt of the burden.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.