DAZN started in the summer and increased the prices significantly. Prime Video, Amazon’s streaming service, which also broadcasts Champions League games exclusively, also followed suit recently. Now Sky, the next owner of football rights in Germany, has announced that they want more viewers in the future.
The pay TV provider announced higher prices, at least for existing customers. According to a report by the industry service “dwdl.de”, the monthly tariffs will increase between EUR 1 and EUR 9.99. However, an increase of 9.99 euros only affects five percent of users, a Sky spokesman told the portal.
Apparently customers with expiring conditions are affected. “The adjustment will take effect after the respective current contract period,” said Sky: “With a switch to new contract conditions, many customers will also be more flexible because they will have a new, monthly termination option. Customers who do not wish to continue their contract have the option of canceling it within four weeks of receiving information about their price adjustment at the time the price adjustment takes effect.”
The broadcaster also explains the reasons for the increase: “We are investing in innovative products, services and high-quality program content. We are adjusting our prices to take account of the increased costs for program licenses and technical infrastructure.”
The customers who are affected by this will be informed in a timely and transparent manner about what the price increase means for their individual contract conditions. The price increase should also affect many football fans, as Sky shows most of the Bundesliga games.
According to “dwdl.de”, new customers are initially not affected by the increases. Anyone who now signs a new and usually one-year Sky contract should also pay the standard prices, which are now becoming more expensive, after the twelve months.
Other pay TV and streaming providers have also recently raised their tariffs, such as Prime Video or DAZN, which has even increased the prices several times, most recently from EUR 14.99 to EUR 29.99 per month. The pay provider, which has been active in Germany since August 2016, had previously increased the costs for the monthly subscription from EUR 11.99 to EUR 14.99 last year. The offer includes games in the Bundesliga and almost all games in the Champions League.
“We started six years ago with ten euros a month, but now we have a much larger program, a lot more rights, also in the premium segment, and a product that is significantly better quality,” DAZN boss Alice Mascia said Increase justified in September: “Actually, we should have raised the price earlier.”
