Free Netflix streams on rise amid price hikes, cost of living crisis

More people are turning to free – and illegal – streams of Netflix. Despite the wide availability of streaming services, a new study from piracy tracking company Muso has revealed a rise in the number of people turning to illegal alternatives. And Netflix boxsets and films are one of the go-to-choices when people are looking for illegal streams, with data revealing 16 percent of the global piracy market is for illegal access to content created by the Stranger Things and Squid Game makers.

The figures, highlighted by TorrentFreak, come as Netflix, Amazon and Disney have all announced price hikes this year.

In the UK the cost of both the standard and basic Netflix plans have gone by £1 a month, while the premium package has increased by £2 a month.

Amazon, meanwhile, is increasing the price of its Prime service in September in the UK, with it going up from £7.99 a month to £8.99 a month and the yearly price increasing from £79 to £95. The price of Prime Video (£5.99) is staying the same.

Disney, meanwhile, has just announced a price rise in the US which is kicking in this December.

Disney+ is going up from $7.99 a month to $10.99 a month, while a new ad-supported plan will cost the same as a regular Disney+ membership costs now ($7.99) in the States.

All of these price rises have been coming amid a climate of rising energy, petrol and food bills this year.

The cost of living crisis is expected to see energy bills in the UK more than treble this winter, going past the £4,000 a year mark.

Amid these huge rises Muso said this winter could see a huge surge in people cancelling subscriptions for streaming apps.

Already this year Muso has recorded a 25 percent jump in piracy activity for the first six months.

In an article online, Muso CEO and co-founder Andy Chatterley said: “We are in the midst of a cost of living crisis worse than we’ve seen since the 1970s.

“Energy, food and housing costs are rising at unprecedented levels with wages unable to keep up. The shock of the war in Ukraine and the global economy’s continued struggle to recover post-Covid have only added to this heady cocktail of uncertainty. Unless you’re a billionaire, you’re almost certainly feeling the pinch.

“It’s also likely that you haven’t gone a day without reading yet another article about how to slash even more off household budgets. First to go in the bonfire of the luxuries is always subscriptions.”

Just remember, if you are tempted to turn to illegal and free Netflix streams you are breaking the law.

And while you might avoid the monthly charge you could end up facing stiff punishments further down the line.

Express.co.uk previously reported on how internet pirates that illegally watched a film that was available on Netflix later received a letter in the post demanding hundreds of pounds in damages.