Netflix’s new Basic with ads plan is now available in the United States taking the entry cost down to just $6.99 per month. While Netflix remains a popular streaming service globally, the cost of a subscription has been continually rising. Basic with ads is designed to make the service more accessible to more homes, albeit with some additional compromises. For now, the compromises include a lack of Apple TV support.
Previously, new users could choose between either the Basic, Standard, or Premium plans. Following the latest price increase in January 2022, the cost of the cheapest Basic plan rose to $9.99 per month. For those opting for the best Netflix experience possible, the price of the Premium plan rose to $19.99 per month. Netflix has also stopped offering a free trial, so new users do have to pick a plan and pay the monthly cost before gaining access to the video library.
After officially announcing the new subscription tier last month, the Basic with ads plan is now available to homes in the U.S. Priced at just $6.99 per month, Basic with ads is $3 cheaper than the Basic plan. As the name clearly indicates, however, those signing up (or switching) to this plan should expect to see ads before and during episodes and movies. Another compromise is that subscribers to Basic with ads don’t have the ability to download videos to watch offline.
For some homes, a further compromise is going to be the current lack of Apple TV support. Even though Basic with ads appears to be available on most supported devices, a Netflix help page does indicate that Apple TV support is currently missing. While it remains unclear why, Netflix has confirmed to 9to5 Mac that the lack of Apple TV compatibility is only a temporary issue and that support is due to be added in the future.
In the meantime, homes primary using an Apple TV player will need to consider a different device (Basic with ads does work on iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch with iOS 15 or later) or opting for one of the more expensive plans, such as Basic.
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