The Great Re-Bundling: Is Your Streaming Deal Just Cable in Disguise?
When the cord-cutting movement began, the promise was simple: a la carte television. We were finally going to break free from the bloated, expensive cable packages and only pay for the channels we actually watched. For a few years, it felt like we had won. We could pick up a service for a month, watch a specific show, and cancel without a second thought.
However, as we move through 2026, the landscape has shifted. The streaming giants have realized that a la carte is bad for their bottom line. To keep us from "churning" -- subscribing and canceling as we please -- they have turned back to the very model we tried to escape. The bundle is back, and it is quickly becoming the new cable.
Identifying Subscription Creep
Subscription creep is rarely a single, massive price hike. Instead, it is a series of small, "reasonable" decisions. For many families, the Disney Plus and Hulu Duo is a high-utility essential. If you can deal with the ads, the $13 price point is a legitimate deal.
The creep begins when you decide you have had enough of the commercials. By telling yourself, "For only a little more, I can drop the ads," you move to the $20 Duo Premium. While it feels like a minor upgrade, that decision actually causes a 54 percent increase in the cost of your bundle. This is the definition of creep: you are paying significantly more for the exact same content, just to change the delivery.
The Math of the "Just in Case" Tax
The industry sells expanded bundles on the premise of "savings," but those savings are often an illusion built on the "Just in Case" tax. This happens when you expand that core duo to include sports services you might not actually need.
Disney currently offers two primary tiers for its sports-inclusive packages. The Disney Plus, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle sits at $35.99 a month. If you want the "Premium" version to keep your movies and series ad-free, that price jumps to $44.99.
This is where you start paying for content "just in case" you might want to see a game. By moving into the ESPN Unlimited tier, you are paying for an all-encompassing sports subscription that many users simply do not use to its full potential. If you are not a dedicated sports fan watching daily, you are essentially paying a $25 monthly premium over the basic Duo. Over the course of a year, that is $300 spent on digital shelf space for games you never watched.
Maintaining Your Independence
To beat the re-bundling trap, you have to remain disciplined. The convenience of having every service under one login is exactly what the providers want, because it makes you less likely to notice the waste in your budget.
True independence means being willing to break the bundle. If a service in your package has sunk to the bottom of your priority list, it is time to stop paying for it. Cord-cutting has always been about having more control over the viewing experience, and that control starts with refusing to pay for "convenience" that you do not actually use.
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