The price of a Netflix subscription in Australia is getting more expensive, as of today. New sign-ups will have to pay the higher price immediately, while existing accounts have a month’s notice. Here’s how much you’ll pay from July onward.
Here’s the straightforward details of it all: depending on which plan you currently subscribe to, on your next monthly subscription fee after June 29 you’ll pay either $1, $2 or $3 extra.
On the basic $8.99 plan, which is for a single device and doesn’t include HD or Ultra HD streaming, you’ll now pay $9.99. On the standard $11.99 plan which includes HD streaming to two devices, you’ll now pay $13.99. On the premium $14.99 plan which includes Ultra HD streaming to up to four devices, you’ll now pay $17.99.
Here’s a table with the details of the new plans:
Any new sign-ups to Netflix will find these prices on the site’s pricing page. Existing customers get a one-month reprieve — depending on which date in the monthly cycle you initially subscribed, you’ll receive an email with 30 days’ notice of the updated pricing.
Netflix’s price increase is the first since it launched in Australia in March 2015, and is in part due to the government’s move to impose GST on digital products.
The price increases are minimal: just an 11 per cent increase on the basic plan, 16 per cent on the standard plan and 20 per cent on the premium plan. On a service that has added so much since launch — a huge amount of original content, offline downloads, data saving features and so on — it’s barely a drop in the ocean, especially when Netflix is so affordable to start with.
A Netflix spokesperson gave this statement to Gizmodo:
“From time to time, Netflix plans and pricing are adjusted as we add more exclusive TV shows and movies, introduce new product features and improve the overall Netflix experience to help members find something great to watch even faster. We also adjust plans and pricing to respond to local market changes, such as tax or regulatory changes.
“Since launching in Australia in 2015, we have not changed pricing. In light of the upcoming GST increase, we will be rolling out updated plans and pricing starting June 28 in Australia. Members will be notified of the changes via email and service notifications.”
Comments
24 responses to “Australia, Your Netflix Just Got More Expensive”
Still better than Foxtel.
Not watching anything is better than Foxtel.
Was Foxtel originally the one crying foul about Netflix being so cheap because they don’t pay tax… or am I just making things up? (I know I saw a few newscorp pointing it out anyway)
If that is indeed the case, I find it hilarious they are still cheaper AND better quality than Foxtel can ever hope to be.
I think that was more Gerry Harvey. He said that along with other gems like, “Nobody ever made money off the Internet.”
The tech guy on news.com.au made a big article about how he is ditching Netflix forever and signing up to Foxtel.
But last week he made an article about how all his friends have kids and mortgages and marriages and he is 30, single and runs out of money every week. So he made engagement photos with his cat.
So he doesn’t sound very stable. It looks like newscorp rubbish to me.
Haha. I saw that too. Talk about selling your soul for your employer.
I remember those. He got torn to shreds in the comments section of his ‘ditching Netflix’ story, which made for an entertaining read. Also, there currently happens to be a story on their front page summarised as:
Sneaky ploy Netflix hoped you had missed
THE ‘Netflix tax’ was already bad enough, but the streaming service has used it to hide a move to get even more cash out of you
Still cheaper than Foxtel.
It’s crazy how they’re still putting their faith in the package model. I mean, if you were a sports fan who just wanted to watch sports, you’re effectively slugged with $10-15 “penalty”.
I’ve using the service for free for a few months, if only to watch Into the Badlands, GoT and TWD when they hit, but their scratching at your door for other “channels” is annoying.
Oh, and you can’t turn off the background tv stream while you’re looking for something to watch. And their tv ad – the one with everyone talking like a lobotomised cult – is horrendous.
I logged back in specifically to give you an upvote. 😉
I mean, I’d LIKE to say it isn’t worth it, and maybe it wouldn’t have been the first six months of Aussie netflix, but the rate we’re getting new shows now, like, one every single week at this point, it’s pretty much justifiable, this sort of pricing point.
Actually, is it really worth it? If they release one show a week (which they don’t and are quite inconsistent) then you’re essentially paying 14-18 bucks a month for 4 movies… Which u didn’t choose. Even if we say in simplistic terms that 80% of your monthly fee goes to giving you access to the existing library, then it’s still about 4 bucks a month for 4 movies you didn’t choose. Hmm…
I always find something to watch on it each week so yeah it is
*still waiting for The Expanse S2*
Apparently it will finally be out in August.
Did anyone else binge GLOW over the weekend?
Wife and I often cancel our payments for 3-4 months then start again when there’s a few shows we’re ready to binge on. Totally worth the extra couple $$ per month.
Hold up, why did prices go up by more than the GST applied?
Hopefully to better compete with our “friends” at Foxtel for licensing…
I was wondering the same thing. Not that I’m too worried as it’s only an extra $1, but still strange.
The cost of a year’s access to Netflix is pretty much what I used to pay for Foxtel per MONTH a few years back. So, yes. An extra dollar for me (on basic) is acceptable. I am getting my money’s worth each month.
Netflix is filled with crap though.
Old stuff I have seen 100x, new stuff that is crap and one or two gems.
Binge watch the gems and then twiddle thumbs.
If it wasn’t for the kids I would drop it, not because of the price, but because it has so very little GOOD content. The delay in new seasons from overseas is a bit naff too, spending close to a year avoiding spoilers on the net for some shows (expanse, I am looking at YOU) can be a bit annoying.
Piratebay looking better and better
“In light of the upcoming GST increase” aka being forced to actually pay standard GST.
Oh an The Expanse! I refused to wait that long for the Expanse season two. If it wasn’t so naughty I’d recommend using one of those totally legal streaming sites. That show is fucking amazing. Best sci fi series in years. I wasn’t going to wait six months for it.
I’ll just use Google’s open dns addresses to bypass Australia’s weak attempt to block PirateBay and stick with PirateBay.