The Complete History of Starz Price Hikes
Introduction
Given their start as a pay television network, it’s no surprise that Starz would want to expand into streaming. Their latest streaming service isn’t their first. They previously had Starz on Demand for their cable channel subscribers, their Starzplay agreement with Netflix, and Lionsgate+, but they decided to create one more platform in 2016. Starz was launched in the spring of that year, offered at the price of $8.99.
However, like many other streamers, Starz still had to increase prices. While touted as a cheaper alternative to cable, the cost of most streaming subscriptions soared over the decade. Because of these multiple price hikes, we decided to look into them, investigating each streaming service to see what might be in store for their subscribers. This article will be focused on Starz.
Starz Price Hikes
June 26, 2023. From $8.99 to $9.99. (Starz monthly plan)
The first time Starz raised their prices was seven years after launch. At the time of the rise, their monthly subscription cost less than the ad-free plans of other network-backed streaming services.
- STARZ monthly: $9.99 (+$1)
- STARZ yearly: $74.99 (No change)
To encourage new subscribers to sign up, Starz held a promotional discount that offered a three month subscription at $15.
August 29, 2023. From $74.99 to $69.99. (Starz yearly plan)
The next time Starz changed their prices, they went in a surprising direction. Instead of increasing prices, they actually lessened the price of their annual subscription by $5.
- STARZ monthly: $9.99 (No change)
- STARZ yearly: $69.99 (-$5)
Usually, streaming services price yearly plans at around ten times the monthly rate. However, with this change, Starz’ annual subscribers pay for around six times the monthly plan. It’s like paying for Starz at nearly half off for the whole year.
September 5, 2024. From $9.99 to $10.99. (Starz monthly plan)
A year later, Starz raised their monthly price by $1. The price of the annual plan remained the same.
- STARZ monthly: $10.99 (+$1)
- STARZ yearly: $69.99 (No change)
To encourage new users to subscribe, Starz priced their first month at $5.99.
Starz Future Price Hikes
Given that Starz only increased their prices twice, it’s hard to tell how Starz will price their service moving forward. It only happened two times, after all. However, it’s nice to see streamers keep their prices relatively stable. Having only two price hikes, and having each of them being $1 increases, shows how committed Starz is to making streaming accessible.
So far, we only talked about subscriptions made directly on the platform, but it’s not the only way to watch Starz. If you happen to be subscribed to another streaming service, you might be able to try out Starz via their available add-ons. Hulu or Prime Video subscribers should check out the Starz on-demand add-on. If you’re streaming live TV on Sling, Fubo, DirecTV, and Philo, Starz also happens to have an on-demand add-on and channels for you. On occasion, like last June on Prime Day, discounts are made available for these add-ons, though it does take time and patience to find them.
Either way, we hope that Starz will continue to keep their prices low, especially since every other streaming service seems to be raising them every year.
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