Aug 21 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL ) will raise the price

of streaming service Apple TV+ by $3 starting Thursday,

following a similar move by Comcast ( CMCSA )-owned

NBCUniversal's Peacock.

The ad-free streaming service will now cost $12.99 per

month, up from $9.99 earlier, for new subscribers in the U.S.

and select international markets, Apple ( AAPL ) said in a statement.

The annual subscription price remains unchanged, as does the

pricing for Apple One, which bundles Apple TV+ with services

such as iCloud and Apple Music, among others.

Apple TV+ is known for psychological thriller 'Severance',

which garnered 27 Emmy Award nominations this year, and popular

original shows such as 'Ted Lasso' and 'The Morning Show'.

However, the streaming network has lagged behind rivals

Netflix ( NFLX ), Disney+ and Amazon.com's ( AMZN )

Prime Video in terms of subscribers.

The iPhone maker does not break down the subscribers for

Apple TV+, but it is estimated to have reached 40.4 million at

the end of 2024, according to five analysts polled by Visible

Alpha.

In comparison, Netflix ( NFLX ) had over 300 million paid memberships

at the end of last year.

Apple ( AAPL ) had last increased the subscription price for Apple

TV+ by $3 in October 2023.

Peacock raised the prices for both its ad-supported plans

and premium plus plans by $3 in July.

Apple ( AAPL ) is losing more than $1 billion a year on Apple TV+,

the Information had reported in March. It has spent more than $5

billion a year on content since launching Apple TV+ in 2019 but

trimmed it by around $500 million last year.