Yahoo Finance Binge launches ads on $10 monthly subscriptions
Binge customers will have the option to sit through ads in exchange for a cheaper deal.
Binge has launched an ad-supported tier on its entry-level package, Binge Basic, which currently costs consumers $10 per month.
That means rather than a completely new ad-supported tier, ads will now be part of the existing Basic tier, with the Standard and Premium packages remaining as they were.
Ads will be capped to 4 minutes per hour, one third of the volume allowed on free-to-air TV in Australia. Pre- and mid-rolls will appear in some TV series, excluding movies and kids content.
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Finder analysis found the entire series of Succession on Binge would take 30 hours to watch. Adding ads into the mix would mean sitting through an extra 2 hours of ads on the Binge Basic plan.
Finder streaming expert Mark Neilson said that, as the cost of living continued to strain households, streaming services were at risk of being axed.
“Binge is not the first streaming service to launch an ad-supported tier in Australia – back in November, Netflix launched its new lower-priced, ad-supported plan for $6.99 a month,” Neilson said.
“When Netflix launched its ad-supported plan, some titles were missing on this tier. On Binge Basic, the content offering will remain the same as what you would find on its other tiers.”
Neilson said those on the Basic tier who didn’t wish to view ads would have to change their package to at least Binge Standard for $16 a month.
“That means it will cost you $6 a month – or $72 a year – more to avoid watching ads on Binge,” he said.
Aussies changing their viewing habits
A Finder survey of 1,059 respondents revealed two in five Aussies had made changes to their streaming plan due to the recent price increases.
Cost-of-living pressures put streaming plans on the chopping block, with 5 per cent admitting they had cancelled all streaming services due to price hikes.
The research found one in four dropped one or more providers, while 8 per cent switched to a lower-cost plan from the same provider.
Some started freeloading off someone else’s account (6 per cent), while others switched to a cheaper provider (5 per cent).
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