Personal Finance News
T-Mobile Adding Hulu Subscription Perk to Top-Tier Service Plan
Wireless carrier T-Mobile has added another streamer to one of its service plans.
About Hulu on Us:
Today, T-Mobile announced its latest offering: Hulu on Us. Starting January 24th, those with the wireless carrier’s Go5G Next plan will be able to add Hulu (With Ads) at no additional cost. This perk is valued at $95.88 per year as Hulu (With Ads) currently costs $7.99 per month. At this time, it’s unclear whether T-Mobile customers will be able to upgrade to an ad-free tier of Hulu or a Disney Bundle product as part of this promotion. However, more details are expected to be revealed when the perk launches later this month.
Introduced in August of last year, Go5G Next is T-Mobile’s top-tier plan (followed by Go5G Plus and the Essentials plan). According to the carrier’s site, the plan includes unlimited premium data, as well as the ability to upgrade an eligible device every year. While the Next plan starts as low as $52 per month, that rate requires 5 lines and AutoPay. A single line with Go5G Next is currently $100 a month, inclusive of taxes and fees with an AutoPay discount.
In addition to Hulu, T-Mobile also offers Netflix and Apple TV+ to select customers. Notably, while both of these services are included with the mid-tier Go5G Plus plan, the upcoming Hulu on Us will be exclusive to Go5G Next plan.
What they’re saying:
Announcing the new perk, T-Mobile’s President of Marketing, Strategy and Products Mike Katz said, “As the Un-carrier, we go beyond delivering the incredible service that customers expect from America’s 5G leader. T-Mobile customers get the best value and the best entertainment streaming bundle in wireless — just for being customers, without having to pay a penny more.” Katz went on to note, “In addition to Apple TV+, Netflix and MLB.TV, Go5G Next customers now also get a subscription to Hulu … all four on us. That’s over $400 a year in streaming benefits, from the very best services in the market, all included in your plan at no extra cost.”
My thoughts:
These types of streaming bundles have exploded in popularity as more platforms join the fray. In just the past few months, we’ve seen Peacock partner with Instacart as well as T-Mobile rival Verizon introduce a Netflix/Max combo add-on. As many have pointed out, there’s a bit of irony to these offerings as streaming was seen as an a la carte option standing in contrast to the likes of cable whereas, now, it’s the streaming platforms going the bundle route.
As for this particular offering, since it comes at no extra cost to T-Mobile Go5G Next customers, it seems like an easy win — especially for those who are currently paying out of pocket for Hulu. However, those who might be tempted to upgrade to Go5G Next for this perk or potentially upgrade their Hulu on Us perk to ad-free (assuming such an option is available) may want to consider whether those actions are actually worth it.