Netflix users set to pay more as popular plan is axed for good

Subscribing to Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and the rest is expensive business.

Pop a Sky Sports package on top of that and you're paying well into three figures every month just to watch films and TV.

Well, bad news because Netflix could soon be set to make you pay more if you want to keep watching the likes of Better Call Saul or The Crown.

In a letter to shareholders as part of its fourth quarter report for 2023, Netflix revealed it is looking to 'phase out' its cheapest plan.

This plan is Netflix's Basic ad-free plan, which comes in at £6.99 per month.

The most expensive sets you back more than a tenner more at £17.99 a month.

Now, the issue for customers already on the Basic plan is that the standard plan - which is cheaper at £4.99 a month - doesn't come with the same perks.

Say hello to adverts.

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So, now the Basic plan is being phased out, if you want to stay ad-free you'll now have to pay a minimum of £10.99 a month.

This means that those currently on the Basic plan will soon be having to fork out a bit more per month for their Netflix privileges.

This marks somewhat of a U-turn from Netflix as last summer, the streaming giant stopped allowing people to join the Basic plan but did allow those already on it to remain.

On the removal of the Basic plan, the report says: "Scaling our ads business represents an opportunity to tap into significant new revenue and profit pools over the medium to longer term.

"In Q4 of 2023, like the quarter before, our ads membership increased by nearly 70% quarter over quarter, supported by improvements in our offering (e.g., downloads) and the phasing out of our Basic plan for new and rejoining members in our ads markets.

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"The ads plan now accounts for 40% of all Netflix sign-ups in our ads markets and we’re looking to retire our Basic plan in some of our ads countries, starting with Canada and the UK in Q2 and taking it from there.

"On the advertiser side, we continue to improve the targeting and measurement we offer our customers."

So there you have it, Basic plan customers in the UK will be made to change from the Basic plan by the end of June 2024 to keep an active Netflix subscription.

The report isn't great, even if you pay for a more premium plan than the Basic package.

Netflix said costs will eventually go up for everyone on every package: "As we invest in and improve Netflix, we’ll occasionally ask our members to pay a little extra to reflect those improvements, which in turn helps drive the positive flywheel of additional investment to further improve and grow our service."