It turns out that giving subscribers a bunch of free games every month is a bit more expensive than Sony first realized. The company will be increasing the price of their PlayStation Plus subscription by $10 starting September 22nd, bringing the price up from $49.99 to $59.99 per year.
Three-month PlayStation Plus subscriptions will also increase by $7, up from $17.99 to $24.99. One month subscriptions will remain at $9.99, though they still provide significantly worse value than the yearly plan.
The pricing changes won't affect current subscribers until their plans are up for renewal. Those whose plans expire before September 22nd will be treated to a full year of PlayStation Plus at the old $49.99 price, however any renewals on or after the date will be subject to the price hike. For those who don't have PlayStation Plus, it could be a good idea to purchase a yearly subscription now at the old price before it increases.
If you'd rather not pay an extra $10 per year for PlayStation Plus, Sony advises users to disable the auto-renewal feature in their account settings before September 22nd.
PlayStation Plus comes with a number of benefits for gamers in Sony's ecosystem. The subscription provides free games every month, which can be collected, downloaded, and played so long as the subscription is active. On the PlayStation 4, a PlayStation Plus subscription is required for online gaming in the majority of cases.