Max Price Increase Goes Into Effect Today, Just Ahead Of House Of The Dragon Season 2

Just ahead of the Season 2 debut of House of the Dragon, Warner Bros. Discovery has announced a price increase for its Max streaming service.

The ad-free plan specifically is going up $1, from $16/month to $17/month. The yearly ad-free plan is rising from $150 to $170, and the "Ultimate" plan is rising to $21/month or $210 for the year. These changes go into effect immediately, so anyone signing up for Max to stream House of the Dragon, or any re-upping the membership now, will pay the increased rate.

All of Max's ad-supported plans are staying at the same price, which is $10/month or $100/year. Max's ad-based plans are highly lucrative because advertisers pay Warner Bros. Discovery and the company gets a subscription fee, and now their price points are even more attractive to new members who don't mind watching ads.

In addition to the Season 2 debut of House of the Dragon, Max is adding another high-profile release, The Penguin, later this year.

Price hikes are commonplace in the world of streaming services, and it's not uncommon for price increases to be timed around the debut of a high-profile piece of content. For example, in the world of gaming, Microsoft raised the price of Game Pas prior to the debut of Starfield.