Disney+ Set to Hike Prices, Introduce an Ad-Supported Option

The happiest platform on Earth?

Well, it's happening. While it's long been one of the more affordable streaming options, Disney+ has announced it's raising its prices -- and not by a little bit. Starting on Dec. 8, the cost of a monthly Disney+ subscription is getting a serious hike.

Even worse? What used to be one of the few platforms with no ads is now getting an ad-supported tier. And get this: The ad-supported option is going to have the same monthly cost we're currently paying for the no-ads service. Isn't that a kick in the behind?

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Disney+ without ads is increasing to $10.99 a month

When the new prices start this winter, subscribers who prefer their Disney+ content sans ads will be paying $10.99 for the privilege. Considering that the same service is only $7.99 now, we're looking at a massive 27% increase. Talk about inflation.

You'll still have the option to get an annual subscription for a slightly lower price than the monthly plan -- but that's getting a hike, too. Currently, the annual subscription costs just $79.99, or $6.67 a month. Starting in December, it's going to skyrocket to $109.99 a year. That works out to a monthly cost of $9.17 -- the same 27% increase as the monthly plan.

Ad-supported tier will cost $7.99

If the idea of forking out an extra $3 a month for your Disney+ content is untenable, you could consider the ad-supported option that will launch along with the price increases. Your monthly cost will stay at $7.99 -- but now you'll get bombarded with ads. Yay.

Unfortunately, if you're willing to put up with ads but want to pay annually, tough luck. The ad-supported tier won't have an annual payment option. This means the absolute lowest price you'll be able to pay for Disney+ will be the $7.99 monthly fee for the ad-supported plan.

Disney/Hulu bundle getting overhauled, too

Those who are interested in pairing their Disney+ subscription with a Hulu plan will also see some differences. At the bottom of the tiers will be a new option for a dual Disney+ and Hulu bundle, both with ads, for $9.99 a month. You can tack on ad-supported ESPN+ for another $3 a month.

If you are a current subscriber of the combo that offers Disney+ with no ads, Hulu with ads, and ESPN+ with ads, you'll also get a price hike to $14.99, up from $13.99. However, it looks like this plan option may be closed to new subscribers soon, as Disney's new pricing chart has it dubbed as a "legacy" option.

The only option that won't see a price increase -- yet? -- is the Premium package. Anyone who wants to go all-in on a (mostly) ad-free bundle can still get the Premium package for $19.99 a month. This gives you Disney+ and Hulu with no ads, as well as an ad-supported ESPN+ (the only way ESPN+ comes).

And no, they're not hurting for cash

For folks thinking that the price increases are a sign that Disney's streaming services are hurting for subscribers, or that Disney overall is struggling -- think again. Disney recently hit a record in subscriber numbers, surpassing competitor Netflix for the first time with 221 million subscribers across its streaming platforms.

And Disney itself is doing just fine, too. The company pulled in $21.5 billion in revenue in the second quarter alone.

No, what we're seeing here is pure corporate greed. The company has a large enough market share now that it simply doesn't have to worry about driving away customers with large price hikes. It may even encourage some holdouts to upgrade to the all-inclusive (and more expensive) Premium plan.

Sure, some folks will leave -- but many won't. After all, what's a few more dollars a month to make sure Baby Yoda is living his best life?