There are plenty of parallels between streaming first-mover Netflix (NFLX -9.09%) and Amazon.com's (AMZN -2.56%) Prime Streaming Video service.
Netflix has been around longer, but it hasn't taken Amazon.com long to establish its Prime Streaming service as one of the most powerful players in streaming media. Netflix and Amazon.com have also notched the most noteworthy wins in developing their own original content.
Source: Netflix.
And recently, thanks to a series of moves from these companies, they share another trend: price hikes.
Is the price right?
Last week, Netflix announced that, effective immediately, it would increase the cost of its standard streaming membership for new members from $7.99 a month to $8.99, while also unveiling a cheaper option without HD streaming or the ability to use Netflix on multiple devices. This follows Amazon.com's March move to increase the cost of its Prime subscriptions to $99 per year from the original $79.
The culprit that's driving this pricey trend? Rising costs.
According to Netflix and Amazon.com, their respective price increases will be used entirely to deal with rising costs affecting their operations, instead of increasing profits for investors as some had hoped.
In the video below, tech and telecom analyst Andrew Tonner further examines the price hike news and what it means for investors.
Editor’s note: To clarify, the two-year period mentioned in the video refers to the delay of the price hike for current subscribers rather than a promise not to raise prices for new subscribers for two years.
