If – like us – you're weary of what seems like ever-increasing streaming prices, Verizon's new subscription bundle could be the shape of better things to come. Today, the telecom giant announced a new $10 per month streaming deal that gives its myPlan customers access to both Netflix and Max – and it will be available as soon as December 7.
You're not getting the highest quality, ad-free tiers for that, though. Both of the best streaming services in the bundle are the ad-supported subscription versions. But $10 per month is considerably cheaper than taking out the two services independently, which cost $6.99 and $9.99 a month separately. Plus, the new bundle also means that customers can now get five streaming services for just $20 per month, if they also sign up for Verizon's exclusive $10 Disney bundle (that includes Disney Plus, ESPN Plus and Hulu).
As The Hollywood Reporter points out, this is the first time that Netflix has offered wholesale discounts on its plans for many years – or at least that's what appears to be the deal, according to the publication: "the 40% discount suggests that either Verizon, Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix or some combination thereof is helping to subsidize those costs."
And that's not all. Apple and Paramount Plus could be joining forces too.
Stranger things have happened in streaming
The news comes just days after multiple outlets reported that Apple and Paramount were in discussions about combining Apple TV Plus and Paramount Plus in a more affordable combination – and as the Reporter suggests, it's possible that this too could be a bundle offered via a third party such as Verizon. While Apple TV Plus doesn't have an ad-supported tier, reports suggest that Apple wants it to do much bigger numbers than it's currently doing, and a bundle would be one way of achieving that.
Bundling would help address a key concern for streamers: churn, which is when customers go "HOW FREAKING MUCH?" and cancel their subscriptions. That language might just be me, but with subscription prices increasing many of us are taking a cool look at what we're spending on streaming and wondering which ones are really worth keeping. With the services' ad-funded packages delivering decent profit margins, bundling might mean slightly reduced subscription revenues but more eyeballs to sell to advertisers.
Of course, bundling isn't new to streaming – or even new to TV. It was part of the landscape for cable and satellite subscribers long before video on demand was twinkling in anybody's eye. But the new alliances are significant because they involve Apple and Netflix, both of which have strongly resisted bundling and both of which appear to have changed their minds. Whatever next: Netflix allowing Apple to integrate it more tightly on the Apple TV? Stranger things have happened.
