Peacock removes its free option for new customers • businessroundups.org

Peacock is no longer offering its free tier to new customers, an NBCUniversal spokesperson confirmed to businessroundups.org on Tuesday. The company says it is shifting its focus to its Premium offerings, which will help the streaming service remain competitive in the market. The change was first reported by The Streamable.

The free tier is still available to users who already have a subscription, the spokesperson said in an email. In addition, users who cancel their paid subscriptions are automatically downgraded to the free tier. Peacock has been offering the free tier since its launch in 2020, giving users limited access to the streaming service’s catalog of content. The level contained a limited amount of content compared to the paid levels.

New customers will now have to choose between Peacock’s Premium or Premium Plus levels. The ad-supported Premium tier costs $4.99 per month and includes the entire content library, live sports, and NBC and Bravo shows after they air on TV. The Premium Plus tier costs $9.99 per month and offers an ad-free experience, support for offline viewing, and a live stream from your local NBC channel.

Peacock launched around the same time as Disney+, HBO Max, and Apple TV+, but was the only one to offer a free tier. Now the company’s focus is shifting. The spokesperson told businessroundups.org that Peacock is now focusing on its Premium offering, noting that the paid plan is more reflective of its brand.

The move comes as Peacock recently reported its best quarterly earnings since launch. The streaming service gained five million paying subscribers fourth quarter of 2022, bringing the total to 20 million compared to the previous quarter’s more than 15 million subscribers. The increase in paid subscribers was mainly due to the FIFA World Cup, which was streamed in Spanish on Peacock Premium and Telemundo.