Our editorial inbox was flooded this past week with the same burning question: "How can this be justified?" Outraged discussions are also trending across social media regarding the latest rates from ClipMyHorse. The market leader in equestrian streaming, which maintains close ties to major governing bodies such as the FEI and USEF, has drastically hiked its subscription prices.
The price adjustments are substantial and appear to hit professionals particularly hard:
-
Standard Membership: Increased from approx. €149.99 to €239.99 per year.
-
Premium/Professional: Users wishing to perform more than 40 searches in the extensive video library will now pay a staggering €719.99 per year.
"Who is willing to pay this?" many ask in the comments. For many, however, it is not a choice. "As a professional, you are almost forced to," one stakeholder responded. "Due to this streaming service's monopoly, dealers simply cannot bypass it if they want to research, screen, or present horses."
Rising Server Costs
In a response, ClipMyHorse stated that the price increase can primarily be attributed to rising server and operational costs, as well as higher travel and personnel expenses. Furthermore, the company is investing heavily in innovation. These claims appear plausible; the streaming service manages a massive amount of stored data, and searching through that archive requires significant bandwidth. Providers such as Amazon and DigitalOcean have increased their prices by approximately 13% to 20% over the last two years.
However, when comparing these costs to other platforms, such as Netflix, which offers an unlimited annual connection for €204 per year, or Disney+, with a full subscription at €191.88 per year, the subscription fees for ClipMyHorse still appear extremely high, even when accounting for event broadcasting rights and similar expenses.
The Equestrian Newspaper : De Paarden Gazet; is currently conducting an in-depth investigation. We would value your opinion, please share your thoughts via the survey below.
