Netflix Subscription Gets Costlier In UK, Ireland As It Seeks To Tap Growing Global Appetite For British Content

Netflix Inc NFLX bumped up its subscription prices for U.K. and Ireland subscribers, Variety reports. Netflix sees a "growing global appetite for British content." The U.K. is Netflix's biggest production hub outside the U.S. and Canada, with a content budget of $1 billion in 2020.

Netflix had ~14 million subscribers in the U.K. and 0.6 million in Ireland. It had 221.8 million paid streaming subscribers globally at 2021 end.

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Netflix raised the Standard monthly plan (with two HD streams) price in the U.K. by £1 to £10.99, and in Ireland by €2 to €14.99. The streaming giant also lifted the Basic monthly package (one non-HD stream) by £1 to £6.99 in the U.K. and by €1 to €8.99 in Ireland. It marked Netflix's first price hike for the tier.

Netflix boosted the Premium monthly service (four streams in up to 4K HD) price by £2 in the U.K. to £15.99 and by €3 in Ireland, to €20.99. The price hikes will be effective immediately for new subscribers. The existing subscribers will receive a 30-day notice.

The hikes mark the first increase to the U.K.'s Basic package in 10 years and the first increase in Ireland in eight years. Netflix last raised prices in the U.K. on its two highest tiers in December 2020 and Ireland in March 2021.

 In January, Netflix had raised the subscription fees in the U.S. and Canada amid rising competition and its continued spending on original content.

Price Action: NFLX shares traded higher by 0.07% at $359.05 on the last check Thursday.