Even Hulu realizes that live TV prices are out of control

Hulu is raising the price of its live TV channel bundle for the second time this year. Starting on December 18, Hulu With Live TV will have a base cost of $55 per month, both for new and existing subscribers. That’s a price hike of $10 per month.

As Hulu points out in a blog post, the new price is still a lot cheaper than cable or satellite TV, for which the average home pays about $107 per month according to Leichtman Research Group. Still, as TV networks demand ever-more money for their channels, streaming providers are no less affected than traditional ones. (Don’t forget that cable companies continue to raise prices as well. They just do a better job hiding the extra fees.)

In any case, Hulu’s blog post seems to acknowledge that live TV pricing has gotten out of hand, and it even gently reminds customers that they don’t have to subscribe year-round:

“[W]e’ve made it easy for Hulu subscribers to switch back and forth between our plans to best suit their needs. If you love college football, choose Hulu + Live TV during the season, then switch to one of Hulu’s less expensive on-demand plans when it’s over. If you enjoy most of your TV on demand but really want to watch live election news, just switch to Hulu + Live TV for a few months.”

Hulu also suggested, as it has for over a year now, that it wants smaller and cheaper bundles, but that’s at odds with TV programmers (one of which is Hulu’s own corporate parent, Disney) that want to keep packages bloated and expensive. Hulu provided no details on how it might reconcile those competing desires.