Hulu Live TV closed out 2021 with around 4.3 million subscribers. While Hulu’s live TV business has been up and down in terms of the number of subscribers over the past year, the latest official figures show the live TV service is back on the right path. That’s for now, at least, as Hulu Live TV only recently encountered yet another price increase.
Along with YouTube TV, Hulu Live TV remains a very popular option for streaming live TV over the internet. Towards the end of 2020, Hulu was serving live TV to more than four million subscribers. Mid-way through last year, however, Hulu saw a drop, resulting in the number of subscribers decreasing to 3.7 million. In November of 2021, Hulu managed to climb back up to four million again.
As of January 1, 2022, Hulu Live TV had 4.3 million subscribers, resulting in an increase of around 300,000 since the last time official numbers were announced. In addition to live TV subscribers, The Walt Disney Company’s Q1 FY22 earnings report also confirmed that the number of basic Hulu subscribers had risen to 40.9 million, as of Jan. 1. Overall, this results in the total number of Hulu subscribers — basic Hulu and live TV combined – having risen to 45.3 million, an increase of roughly 5.5 million compared to the same time last year.
While it is good that Hulu Live TV has seen an increase in the number of subscribers, the higher number relates to just after the latest price increase hit the live TV service. Whether that means the number might drop down again during the next quarter remains to be seen, but it is a possibility. Interestingly, while price increases do often tend to result in a loss of some subscribers, the latest Hulu Live TV increase is a little different. Although the price did increase from $64.99 to $69.99 per month, the increase also resulted in the bundling of both the Disney+ and ESPN+ subscriptions with the live TV package.
In principle, this results in the actual overall package offering more value to consumers. While those that don’t necessarily want Disney+ or ESPN+ are likely to disagree on the value, the monthly price for any homes that were previously subscribing to all of these services at the same time is likely to now be cheaper. This approach may help Hulu Live TV avoid losing as many subscribers as it might have otherwise with a standard price increase. Arguably, it may even result in Hulu Live TV becoming a more appealing option to those currently unhappy with the price of their existing live TV service.
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