YouTube TV today announced that it’s raising its monthly subscription price from $49.99 to $64.99, a 30 percent increase.

In a blog post, the streaming service said the new price will take effect today for new subscribers. Existing customers will see the new monthly fee in the next billing cycle on or after July 30.

The price increase has been anticipated since last month when YouTube TV announced it would soon add 14 ViacomCBS channels. (The first eight were added today: BET, CMT, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, TV Land and VH1.) The Google-owned service, which now offers more than 70 channels, blamed the rising cost of programming for the higher monthly bill.

“We don’t take these decisions lightly, and realize how hard this is for our members,” YouTube said. “That said, this new price reflects the rising cost of content and we also believe it reflects the complete value of YouTube TV, from our breadth of content to the features that are changing how we watch live TV. YouTube TV is the only streaming service that includes a DVR with unlimited storage space, plus 6 accounts per household each with its own unique recommendations, and 3 concurrent streams. It’s all included in the base cost of YouTube TV, with no contract and no hidden fees.”

YouTube TV last raised its price in April 2019 from $40 a month to $49.99 a month. Today’s 30 percent increase will likely cause some subscribers to think twice about staying with YouTube TV, which acknowledged that reality in its blog post.

“While we would love every member to continue to stay with our service, we understand that some of you may choose to pause or cancel your membership. We want to make YouTube TV flexible for you, so members can pause or cancel anytime here,” the service stated.

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— Phillip Swann