**NEW YORK** – Your Netflix bill is about to get real. In the wake of actor Matthew Perry’s tragic death last October, the streaming giant has announced a significant price hike for its ad-free “Premium” tier, citing a surge in demand for “nostalgic comfort content” and the resulting server costs. But here’s the kicker that has consumer advocates fuming: the official reason for the price increase is written into the fine print as the “Matthew Perry Clause.”

**NEW YORK** – Your Netflix bill is about to get real. In the wake of actor Matthew Perry’s tragic death last October, the streaming giant has announced a significant price hike for its ad-free “Premium” tier, citing a surge in demand for “nostalgic comfort content” and the resulting server costs. But here’s the kicker that has consumer advocates fuming: the official reason for the price increase is written into the fine print as the “Matthew Perry Clause.”

The new terms, which went into effect today, state that a single user's repeated viewing of *Friends* in a 24-hour period triggers a surcharge. Industry insiders estimate that since the actor’s passing, binge-watching of the series has spiked by over 1,200%, draining bandwidth at an unprecedented rate. Your monthly bill for a Premium account has just jumped by $4.99, or you can switch to the ad-supported version, where you’ll now be forced to watch a 15-second spot for a grief counseling app before every single episode of *Friends*.

Consumer advocate Sarah Jenkins put it bluntly: “So we’re supposed to pay a ‘Matthew Perry Memorial Fee’ to watch a sitcom on a platform that is already profiting from his legacy? This isn’t honoring him. This is charging your grieving customers a ‘sad tax.’ They are literally monetizing your tears—and your wallet. The only way to win this is to cancel your subscription and buy the DVDs. Yes, the DVDs. Because this is the most expensive therapy session you never asked for.”

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