Netflix price increase for monthly subscription to hit 58 million users across US
The 18 per cent increase is the biggest monthly price rise since the streaming service launched in 2007
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Netflix is raising its subscription prices for all 58 million of its US users, marking the first increase since 2017.
The online streaming service will hike the prices of its basic service from $8 per month to $9 per month, while simulataneously raising the cost of a more premium service from $11 to $13.
It marks the biggest price increase for monthly subscriptions since launching its streaming service in 2007, and the first since 2017.
All new Netflix subscribers will be subject to the increased prices, while existing subscribers will see their subscriptions go up over the next three months.
Netflix has made a major effort in recent years to produce original content in order to keep subscribers loyal to its platform and not switch to rivals like Amazon Prime.
It has seen considerable success with series like House of Cards, Stranger Things, and The Crown, as well as films like Birdbox.
A commitment to original content is the reason behind the increase in the cost of subscriptions, while also off-setting the loss caused by credential sharing.
The premium service that Netflix offers provides users with high-definition streaming on up to two different devices at the same time, however account sharing is still expected to cost subscription-based streaming services $1.2bn a year.
Recent figures from market research suggest more than a quarter of millenials share their account details for Netflix and other streaming services, going agains the firms' terms of service.
A UK-based video software firm has developed a way to detect people sharing account details illicitly by using artificial intelligence to monitor suspicious account activity.
"Casual credentials sharing is becoming too expensive to ignore. Our new solution gives operators the ability to take action," said Jean Marc Racine, chief product officer of the software's developer Synamedia.
"Many casual users will be happy to pay an additional fee for a premium, shared service with a greater number of concurrent users. It's a great way to keep honest people honest while benefiting from an incremental revenue stream."
It is not clear whether Netflix plans to implement the system but Mr Racine said his firm is in talks with a number of operators.
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