Netflix’s recent price hike is the least of my concerns
For the uninitiated, Netflix has once again raised the price of its ubiquitous subscription service. The monthly cost for the basic plan rose $1 to $9.99, the standard plan jumped from $13.99 to $15.49, and the premium plan rose from $17.99 to $19.99. This path is unsustainable, as they have now exceeded the price of the premium channel standard-bearer, HBO Max. After losing access to most Disney-owned content, Netflix has been much more reliant on creating its content. This is monumentally expensive, and getting more so each year. Unlike other major streaming services, Netflix has no other source of income other than its subscriber base. This is why I believe that Netflix will eventually succumb to adding an ad-supported tier (much like HBO Max embraced this year) or be priced out of the market.
However; the price is not my main concern with Netflix. They have great content and huge amounts of it. People will complain for a very short while, and then just deal with it and move on like they always do. I believe that the Netflix price increase will not cause people to drop their Netflix subscription, but instead will prompt more people to question their cable subscription.
But the main problem that I have with Netflix is that their pricing model is woefully out of date. For one thing, do they need a tier for standard-definition TV in 2022? Get rid of it and force subscribers to move up to the next tier of HDTV. This will prolong the need for another price hike for a small while. On the upper end, Netflix is the only streaming provider that charges you more for access to 4K video. While it is true that HBO Max’s ad-supported level does not support 4K, that is a new lower-priced option from its standard. I also realize that the other streaming services do not have all of their content in 4K, but they at least offer a good portion of their more recent content in 4K for no additional charge. Paying a premium for the privilege of having access to 4K video made sense for the year 2015, but not in 2022.
Finally, Netflix is one of the few streaming services that does not offer a discounted rate for purchasing a subscription for a year. Disney+, Paramount+, Prime Video, HBO Max, and Hulu all offer discounts for purchasing a year of service in advance, while Apple TV+ allows you to bundle the service with other Apple services for a discount. I believe that Netflix has shown some great innovation over the years by adding video games and movies where you can make choices to change the outcome. Unfortunately, Netflix’s pricing model is as archaic as Blockbuster Video.
