Massive Price Increases for Video Streaming

Just ten years ago, there were no notable paid video streaming services in Switzerland at all. Netflix became the first dedicated video streaming service in Switzerland when it launched in 2014. Since then, video streaming services have achieved huge popularity in Switzerland. In a survey conducted by moneyland.ch in early 2023, 58 percent of participants said that they use Netflix, while 30 percent use Disney Plus, and 23 percent use Amazon Prime Video.

Using data from its own streaming comparison, moneyland.ch analyzed the prices of popular video streaming services.

Comparison of different video streaming platforms

The comprehensive analysis performed by moneyland.ch shows that differences between streaming service providers are enormous. The cheapest streaming subscription costs 1.99 euros – around 1.85 francs – per month. The most expensive subscription from Netflix costs nearly 25 francs per month.

But the price is not the only deciding factor. The selection of movies and series offered is just as important. There too, there are big differences between platforms, as many streaming services offer exclusive content. Many movies and series can only be found on just one video streaming platform.

Table 1: Streaming platforms compared

It is interesting to note that customers of Netflix and Disney Plus can choose between three different subscriptions. These subscriptions all have the same selection of videos, but differ primarily with regard to the image quality. The cheaper plans have a lower resolution. In the case of Disney Plus, the cheapest subscription also has advertising breaks.

“The differences in image quality are large. Video in HD (720p) has just 921,600 pixels, while 4K images are composed of more than 8.3 million pixels. So 4K video is nine times as sharp,” explains Ralf Beyeler from moneyland.ch. “It is a bit of a shame if you own a costly, high-resolution television set, but only use it to watch videos in low resolution,” adds Beyeler.

Sports fans have to reach deep into their pockets

Series, movies, and documentaries are not the only content offered by streaming services in Switzerland. There are also streaming platforms dedicated to sports broadcasts.

Sports fans have to reach deep into their pockets if they want to follow the broad array of sports broadcasts on offer. Sports streaming subscriptions cost between 24.90 and 49.90 francs per month.

Table 2: Sports streaming subscriptions compared

Price hikes are widespread among streaming platforms

A number of streaming service providers have raised their prices over the past months and years. The sports streaming platform Dazn had the biggest price hikes, with the monthly subscription now costing 22 francs more than it used to – a price increase of 171 percent. Other platforms that have substantially raised their prices are Apple TV (82-percent price increase), Disney Plus (81-percent price increase), and Swisscom Blue Sport (67-percent price increase).

In 2023 alone, we saw price increases for Apple TV Plus, Dazn, Disney Plus, My Sport (via Sky Sport), Sky Sport, and Swisscom Blue Sport. Netflix last raised its fees for Swiss customers in November 2021, and the price of Amazon Prime Video last went up in October 2020.

“The price hikes for streaming subscriptions are massive. Officially, total inflation in Switzerland over the past five and ten years is around five percent. So streaming service providers have raised their prices far above inflation rates,” says Beyeler. “The strategy employed by video streaming services is to initially offer affordable prices to attract new customers, and then follow this up by massively raising their prices,” observes Beyeler.

It is interesting to note that Netflix has left the price of its cheapest plan unchanged at 11.90 francs since it entered the Swiss market in 2014. The downside of this plan is that the resolution is low. It is likely though, that Netflix will replace this plan with a new subscription that has advertising breaks in Switzerland as well.

When Netflix first launched in Switzerland, its mid-way plan cost 12.90 francs per month, and its most expensive plan cost 17.90 francs per month. Other platforms like Paramount Plus and Netzkino have also kept their prices stable. Because Netzkino charges fees in euros, the strength of the Swiss franc against the euro has actually resulted in its subscriptions becoming cheaper.