Netflix has raised its prices…again. Every time this happens, subscribers get upset about it. However, now, as Netflix’s 2026 schedule chugs along, it’s gone further than people being angry. That’s because an Italian court has ruled that this is illegal. However, the streamer does plan to appeal this ruling.
It’s not unusual for the price of a Netflix subscription to go up. Sometimes, we can see it coming, and this time, it came a little over a year after the streamer last raised the cost.
Right as this update was announced in the United States, a court in Rome ruled that hikes are illegal. This ruling is in favor of a consumer advocacy group that claimed that Netflix's price increases between 2017 and 2024 were illegal, according to Variety. It also said subscribers should get a refund for what they’ve already paid.
Italy’s Movimento Consumatori consumer advocacy group has explained that it believes what Netflix did is a breach of the country’s national consumer code. According to that code, which limits the "discretionary power companies have to raise prices," updates like this one can’t be made without a valid reason. The lawyers who represented the consumers, Paolo Fiorio and Riccardo Pinna, explained:
For the Premium Plan, the unlawful increases applied in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2024 amount to €8 ($9.22) a month, while for the Standard Plan the total is €4 a month. A Premium subscriber who has paid for Netflix continuously from 2017 to the present day is entitled to a refund of about €500 ($577), while a standard subscriber is due a refund of about €250 ($288).
Netflix now has 90 days to comply with the ruling. If they don’t, each day it's delayed, the company will have to pay a penalty of €700 ($800).
In a statement, Netflix has said it will appeal this. And the report claimed that it could appeal to delay or stop the ruling. Here’s part of the streamer’s statement:
At Netflix, our members come first. We take consumer rights very seriously, and we believe our terms have always been in line with Italian law and practices.
Now, it’s possible that this ruling could make a massive impact in Europe. That’s because legal action has been taken for similar reasons in Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. So far, the streamer has had to deal with little or no consequences.
As I mentioned earlier, all this happened after the price hike announcement in the United States. As of May 1st, the plan I use, which is Netflix’s Without Ads plan, will cost $19.99 per month, which is $2 more than what subscribers are currently paying. Meanwhile, the Standard With Ads plan (which does limit the content you can watch due to licensing restrictions) will go up $1, from $7.99 to $8.99. Lastly, the Premium plan will go up by $2, from $24.99 per month to $26.99 per month.
This case in Rome likely will not have any impact on what’s going on in the US at the moment. However, the timing of it all is notable. So, as the situation continues to develop, we’ll keep you posted.
