Q. I’ve been thinking of getting DIRECTV Now. But I hear they are raising prices. Is that true? And when will it happen if it is true? — Tanya, Cleveland. 

Tanya, as you know, DIRECTV Now is a live streaming service that offers dozens of channels for packages starting at $35 a month.

However, AT&T, which owns DIRECTV Now, tells Engadget.com that it will raise the price for each plan by $5 a month, starting on August 1.

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That means DIRECTV Now’s starter plan (“Live a Little”), which includes more than 60 channels, will go from $35 a month to $40 a month. The ‘Just Right’ package, which includes more than 80 channels, will increase from $50 a month to $55 a month.

The ‘Go Big’ package, which offers more than 100 channels, will rise from $60 a month to $65 a month. And the ‘Gotta Have It’ plan, which includes more than 120 channels, will go from $70 a month to $75 a month.

The price increase comes after Sling TV, DIRECTV Now’s top live streaming rival, just raised the price of its Orange base plan from $20 a month to $25 a month. And YouTube TV, another leading live streamer, last March raised its price from $35 a month to $40 a month.

The live streamers have charged lower rates up to now to lure consumers who are weary of pay TV operators raising their fees every year. But the time has come to balance the pendulum a bit.

Like the cable and satellite services, the live streamers can’t possibly make a profit by charging such low rates indefinitely. Programming costs continue to escalate and they need additional revenue to offset the never-ending increases.–

— Phillip Swann