The Sling TV price hike has arrived, the latest in a disturbing trend that has seen Apple TV Plus, Disney Plus, and many others raise their prices. And this couldn’t come at a worse time for Sling, whose customers may still remember losing ESPN and other Disney-owned channels throughout the weekend.
A year after Hulu with its $5 Live TV bump (which added Disney Plus and ESPN Plus), Sling TV will cost an additional $5 across all three of its tiers. This change is effective immediately for new subscribers.
Broken down by tier, that means Sling Orange and Blue now cost $40 a month, compared to $35 a month. This is a lower entry point than its competitors, and one of the main reasons why Tom’s Guide ranks it as one of the best streaming services. Sling Orange & Blue will now cost $55 per month. Check out our Sling Orange vs Blue guide to see how they are different.
Current subscribers according to Sling TV blog post (Opens in a new tab)They will feel the pain on their next bill “on or after December 3, 2022.” This post was witnessed by Sling TV Group President Gary Schanman saying, “Sling doesn’t own the networks to watch – we pay programmers for their channels, and the price of programming keeps going up.”
In an effort to prevent sentiment from deteriorating further, Shanman stated, “We have a solid list of new features that we’re excited to share in the future, including plans to add over 150 new channels through 2023, new user profiles for your family and automatic binge-watching capabilities.”
Analysis: How does this change things?
Sling is still one of the best cable TV alternatives as it is cheaper than other major live TV services. It’s now only $25 per month cheaper for YouTube TV and $30 per month for the Hulu and Fubo TV live TV bundle. It misses some of the channels that these services lack, most notably ABC and CBS broadcasting networks.
Personally, I won’t be canceling my Sling for YouTube TV subscription (and my test runner) anytime soon. Sling quality is often great (random jacket nights are rarely), and I don’t need the channels YouTube TV has to offer. For example, I already have Hulu in the Disney Bundle to watch ABC shows, like Abbott Elementary.
Sling TV’s high prices put subscribers in a difficult position. The service can raise prices a little, because what are they going to do? Spend more money elsewhere?
[ad_2]
