Netflix Raised Prices Again. But Cancelling May Be Harder Than You Think

Subscription plans are subtly structured to keep users paying—even when prices go up. Here's how we can avoid the traps.

- Hu Meilan and Andree Hartanto

In the latest season of Netflix sci-fi series Black Mirror, there's an episode where a woman needs a subscription streaming service to stay alive. But soon, the basic service is not enough, and she has to continually upgrade to higher tiers—which get increasingly more expensive.

It's a chilling parody of modern life and how deeply embedded subscription services are in our day-to-day lives.

Days after the episode was released, Netflix announced—in a presumably irony-free move—that the price of its three subscription plans—basic, standard, and premium—would go up by between $2 and $4 in Singapore.

The basic tier is now $15.98 a month, and premium is $29.98. Yet, when Netflix was launched here in January 2016, the premium tier was priced at $16.98, only a dollar more than basic is now.

But here's a definite irony: you might be subscribing to Netflix and not even know about Black Mirror or any of its new shows, for that matter. About one in three households in Singapore subscribe to Netflix, and many also pay for other streaming, music, or fitness services.

Yet, a 2024 YouGov survey shows that more than half of consumers have at least one subscription that they have not used in the past six months. In other words, many of us are spending money each month on services that quietly go unused.

It's easy to see why this happens. Singaporeans love a good deal and convenience, and subscription services are designed to deliver just that. For a modest monthly fee, users gain access to a wide range of benefits, from ad-free music on Spotify to early releases and exclusive content on Netflix.

The value proposition is simple: pay a little, get a lot. But when we don't end up using what we're paying for, it becomes a needless expense, especially as subscription prices continue to rise.

Rationally, cancelling these services should be the obvious choice. And yet, many of us do not. Why is this the case?