Netflix has confirmed it is now charging customers extra to be able to watch videos in Ultra HD, reports Variety.
Those who are just coming in for a new Netflix subscription must shell out for the "family plan" which costs $11.99 a month, allowing them to stream Netflix content up to four programs simultaneously, with access to Ultra HD content.
"We decided to move 4K UHD video into our four-stream plan for new members who sign up and care about the highest-quality video Netflix offers," a spokesman for Netflix said. "We have a modest and growing catalog of titles in 4K, including 'House of Cards,' 'Breaking Bad,' 'The Blacklist' and a slate of upcoming Netflix original series."
Todd Spangler of Variety wrote that Netflix did not disclose "how many selections it offers in Ultra HD format, which provides four times the resolution of standard HD and richer color palette."
"The 4K content is available on select models of Ultra HD TVs from LG, Samsung, Sony and Vizio, and Netflix subs with compatible sets will see an additional row displaying 4K TV shows and movies in their on-screen menus," he added.
Aside from new subscribers, current subscribers with newly-purchased 4K UHD TV sets will also have to pay for the $11.99 monthly subscription to be able to watch 4K content, according to HD Guru.
Those who are already subscribed to the 4K plan, however, will be "grandfathered" into the older $7.99 plan, which will last until August 12, 2016, says a Netflix representative.
Darren Orf of Gizmodo wrote, "The biggest problem with 4K displays is that they lack content that actually takes advantage of all those extra pixels, but when Netflix introduced 'House of Cards,' along with other titles, as supporting 4K, it was certainly a step in the right direction. Now, that the streaming company's adoption is underway, it's about time you paid for it."