HBO Max has announced that it is increasing the price of its ad-free subscription by a dollar effective immediately. The monthly subscription is going from $14.99 to $15.99 per month, and the price hike will reflect in your billing cycle on or after February 11, 2023.

The price hike comes right after HBO unexpectedly removed a significant chunk of content from the subscription service, including Westworld and hundreds of classic cartoons and Sesame Street episodes. As The Verge states, you'll effectively be paying more for a lot less content next month onwards. You don't need to worry if you're subscribed to the $9.99 ad-supported plan, though, as HBO Max isn't increasing its price.

In a press email announcing the price hike, HMO Max wrote that the "price increase of one dollar will allow us to continue to invest in even more culture-defining programming and improving our customer support experience for all users."

Several streaming services have increased subscription prices over the last year. Netflix bumped its Standard plan from $13.99/month to $15.49/month and its Premium plan from $17.99/month to $19.99/month early last year. Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN Plus followed suit in August, with Disney Plus getting a $3 price hike for its monthly subscription. Hulu increased its price by $1 for its ad-supported tier and $2 for its ad-free offering, while ESPN Plus got a $3 increase. Towards the end of last year, Apple also raised prices for its Apple Music, Apple TV Plus, Apple One subscriptions by up to $3.

In addition to increasing subscription prices, Netflix also plans to crack down on password sharing and make subscribers pay an add-on fee if they wish to share their account with someone who doesn't live in the same household. The company is already testing this change in select Latin American countries and could soon implement it in the U.S.

Via: The Verge