Streaming giant Netflix is changing its two-year-old price configuration starting this May with a $2 increase in its now "grandfathered" high-definition streaming subscription, originally priced at $7.99 per month.
Subscribers of the company's most popular streaming plan will be paying a monthly fee of $9.99 starting next month. Customers will know when exactly it will take effect on their billing page.
Users will remember that back in 2014, Netflix increased the price of the plan for new customers to $8.99 then to $9.99 last year. These price hikes did not impact users who were subscribed prior to the change, until now.
UBS estimates that this modification will affect around 17 million Netflix subscribers in the U.S., although the company believes that only three to four percent of those will cancel their subscription all together. Netflix itself showed confidence back in January that it won't lose many of its customers because of this.
Unfortunately for Netflix customers in the U.K., the price will be bumped up to £7.49 as early as later this month.
JP Morgan estimates that 80 percent of the people who will be affected in the price hike have no idea about the incoming increase in the usual fee they pay. Netflix, however, told ABC in a statement that users will be informed.
"Impacted members will be clearly notified by email and within the service so that they have time to decide which plan/price point works best for them," Netflix said in the statement.
Change is also coming to subscribers who have been enjoying watching high-definition shows and movies on two screens at the same time. "Last October's price increase for newer members included a one-year hold and will go into effect in October of this year," the company announced.
These users in question will be given the option to downgrade to standard definition for the same price of $7.99 or pay the $9.99 monthly fee for the HD plan.
