Newsletter 
DIRECTV NOW has changed its pricing and channel lineup today. The changes affect both new and existing customers although not necessarily in the same way.
Following reports earlier in the week, and an official announcement yesterday, AT&T has now launched two new DIRECTV NOW plans that have arrived branded as DIRECTV NOW Plus and DIRECTV NOW Max. The Plus plan starts at $50 per month while the Max plan costs $70 per month.
Both new plans are now live for those looking to sign up to DIRECTV NOW today.
For new customers, these two plans are also now the only plans that are on offer as DIRECTV NOW has done away with its four previous options – Live a little, Just right, Go big and Gotta have it.
Customers on any of the existing — and now defunct — plans are still able to remain subscribed to those plans and with any previous discounts applied. Although, all existing DIRECTV NOW subscribers are being subjected to a $10 price increase in general.
Due to various promotions there’s no standard set amount for existing customers so the easiest way to digest the information is to just assume whatever monthly price you are paying currently, the new cost for the same plan will be exactly $10 higher. Once the promotional plan ends, the price will increase to the price points set out today.
The start date for the existing customer price increase is April 12. Again, the exact date for when the price increase takes effect for an individual user will vary depending on their individual billing cycle – if the price does not kick in on April 12, it will do on the next billing date after this date.
It’s worth noting these are not just name-only changes to the plans either due to AT&T effectively redefining what it offers through DIRECTV NOW. For example, both Plus and Max Plans now offer less channels than the baseline Live a little plan did.
DIRECTV NOW Plus comes with 40 channels as standard, and DIRECTV NOW Max offers 50 channels. These are of course the baseline channel lineups as subscribers are able to add more channels on request and at an additional cost.
One of those premium channels that you will no longer have to pay extra for is HBO as the popular network is now included in both Plus and Max plans at no extra cost.
Previously, AT&T offered HBO to its existing DIRECTV NOW customers as a $5 add-on, which in itself was a greatly reduced price compared to the $14.99 per month non-DIRECTV NOW customers are expected to pay.
For Max plan subscribers, the same is true of Cinemax. This was previously available as another $5 add-on but is now included with the more premium plan along with HBO. Plus subscribers will still need to add Cinemax as an additional add-on although the Cinemax add-on has also seen a price rise now and costs $11 per month going forward.
On the HBO point, that too has seen an add-on price increase today. While the network is now included with the two new plans, this means those who remain on one of the old plans and add HBO to that plan, they will have to pay an additional $15 per month – the same price non-AT&T/DIRECTV NOW customers have to pay.