Disney to raise monthly, annual fees for ESPN+

Walt Disney Co will raise its monthly and annual subscription fees for sports streaming platform ESPN+ in the United States, the company said on Monday. The monthly price will be increased by $1 to $6.99, while the annual plan will cost $10 more at $69.99, Disney said.

ESPN+ has about 14 million subscribers. The fees for those getting a bundle of all of Disney's streaming services, including Hulu and Disney+, will remain unchanged and there will be no changes to its UFC pay-per-view prices.

ESPN+ has signed rights deals to stream LaLiga soccer exclusively from August and the golf PGA Tour Live from the next season, as it bets on the rise of streaming and live-sports making a strong comeback from a pandemic-led lull. Disney and Marvel's Scarlett Johansson-starring "Black Widow", which opened simultaneously in theaters and on streaming service Disney+ this month, made a massive $80 million in its first weekend and $60 million on Disney+.