Read This Before You Pay for the Max and Peacock Price Hikes

Another round of price hikes is coming to the streaming networks despite the fact that they are making fewer television shows and movies and laying off more people. Right before the Olympics kick off, Peacock will be raising its subscription price by $2 per month to $7.99 for the ad-supported Peacock, while ad-free will rise by $2 to $13.99 a month. The annual fees will rise to $79.99 and $139.99 accordingly.

However, if you’re a new subscriber, you can sign up now and get a year of Peacock for $20. If you’re an existing subscriber, the hikes won’t take effect until Aug. 17, so if you’re a monthly subscriber and plan on keeping Peacock for another year, it might be a good idea to renew for a year before the deadline.

Max is also raising prices effective today.

The monthly Ad-Free plan will increase by $1 per month, making the new price $16.99/month. The yearly Ad-Free plan will increase by $20 per year, making it $169.99/year. The Ultimate Ad-Free plan (which provides four simultaneous streams) will increase by $1 a month, making the new price $20.99/month. The yearly Ultimate Ad-Free plan will increase by $10 per year, making it $209.99/year.

If you’re a new subscriber, those price hikes will occur immediately. If you’re an existing subscriber, it will take effect at the next billing cycle.

But before you allow your plan to renew at the higher price, if you can wait on House of Dragon (which returns on June 16th), Disney, Hulu, and Max will have a bundle option later this summer, allowing consumers to bundle all three streamers at a discount that will be “priced very attractively.”

Finally, if you’re a sports-only fan, don’t forget that this fall — ahead of the NFL season — Disney (ESPN/ABC), Fox, and Max (TBS/TNT) will be joining forces to put out a streaming plan that combines all of their collective sports offerings (which covers 55 percent of US sports licensing). It will be called Venu Sports. Unfortunately, if you’re hoping to save money, Venu Sports will likely be priced at between $40 and $50 a month, which is a lot of money to pay for Monday Night Football.