Discovery+ Raises Prices 1 Week After the Skydance Merger Closes, but Its Future Remains Unclear

Streaming subscribers have grown used to the ritual: a service announces a price hike, a few weeks pass, and the new rate quietly appears on the bill. What is unusual this time is the context. The latest increase comes from a service whose very role in a newly combined media giant is unclear.

Discovery+ has announced a price increase for US customers, taking effect on Tuesday, October 13. The ad-supported plan rises by $1 to $6.99 a month, while the ad-free plan goes up by $2 to $11.99 a month. It is the first visible move for the service since the merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery closed, creating Skydance Corp.

The new prices apply immediately to new subscriptions, while existing subscribers will get 30 days’ advance notice. Updated rates will show up on billing statements on or after November 12. For anyone already paying, the change means a monthly bill that is $1 or $2 higher.

Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery officially closed their $110 billion merger on Tuesday, October 6, after months of twists. The path included a bidding war with Netflix and a legal fight with 12 state attorneys general and the Writers Guild of America. The deal received clearance from regulators in 68 jurisdictions, including the US Department of Justice and the FCC.

The new company oversees multiple streaming services, including Paramount+, Pluto TV, HBO Max and Discovery+, along with networks such as CBS, HBO, CNN and MTV. It also controls a vast library that includes ‘Harry Potter’, the DC Universe, ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘SpongeBob SquarePants’. Commitments made in the process included investing $1.5 billion in domestic film and TV production over 5 years and releasing at least 30 films a year in theaters.

The timing naturally raises questions about whether the new owners are driving the change. According to a report from Variety, citing a source, the price increase was likely planned well before the merger closed, which would make the timing a coincidence. Some outlets have also noted that the company has framed it as unrelated to the deal.

Still, the hike lands during a period of intense scrutiny, and subscribers will be watching closely for what comes next. Discovery+ was previously housed in Warner Bros. Discovery’s direct-to-consumer division, and its future under Skydance has not been spelled out.

The service is the streaming home for programming from Discovery, HGTV, Food Network, TLC, ID, Animal Planet and Magnolia Network, along with some CNN specials. Popular titles include ’90 Day Fiancé’, ‘Sister Wives’, ‘Ghost Adventures’, ‘Expedition Unknown’ and ‘Deadliest Catch’. A portion of its catalog is also accessible on HBO Max.

Antenna estimated that as of August, there were 4.9 million paying Discovery+ subscribers in the US, with about half on the ad-supported plan. The company last reported 24 million global subscribers in March 2022, before the Warner Bros. and Discovery merger. Executives have previously described the service as a profitable business.

Skydance chairman and CEO David Ellison has said the company eventually plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single streaming app. That process will take some time, and a bundle of the 2 apps is likely in the interim. In its announcement of the closing, the company said consumers can expect significant improvements to its direct-to-consumer products, which will unify into a single service over time.

Notably, Discovery+ was not mentioned at an October 7 press conference where Ellison and other executives laid out their vision. For now, Skydance is maintaining its streaming services as they existed before the merger. That leaves the long-term fate of Discovery+ in limbo, and fans of its reality and lifestyle programming may wonder whether it will be folded into a larger service.

For viewers, the immediate takeaway is practical. New subscribers will pay the higher rates right away, and current customers have a few weeks before the change appears on their bills. Anyone on the ad-free plan will see the larger jump, which reflects a broader pattern in the industry of pushing viewers toward ad-supported tiers.

The hike also fits the larger story of streaming’s maturing economics. As the major players consolidate, price increases have become a regular tool for improving margins, and subscribers are increasingly weighing which services are worth keeping. Whether Discovery+ remains a standalone product or becomes part of a bigger bundle, its price is now a reminder of how quickly the landscape is changing.

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