Apple is readying a series of bundles that will let customers subscribe to several of the company’s digital services at a lower monthly price, Bloomberg News reports, citing “people with knowledge of the effort.”
Mark Gurman for Bloomberg News:
The bundles, dubbed “Apple One” inside the Cupertino, California-based technology giant, are planned to launch as early as October alongside the next iPhone line, the people said. The bundles are designed to encourage customers to subscribe to more Apple services, which will generate more recurring revenue.
There will be different tiers, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private plans. A basic package will include Apple Music and Apple TV+, while a more expensive variation will have those two services and the Apple Arcade gaming service. The next tier will add Apple News+, followed by a pricier bundle with extra iCloud storage for files and photos.
The goal is to offer groups of services at lower prices than would be charged if consumers subscribed to each offering individually… The initiative is a major bid by Apple to achieve the same loyalty that Amazon.com Inc. has won with its Prime program…
The company is also developing a new subscription for virtual fitness classes that can be used via an app for the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV, the people said. That service will be offered in a higher-end bundle with the rest of Apple’s services. Codenamed “Seymour,” the workout package would rival virtual classes offered by companies including Peloton Interactive Inc. and Nike Inc., according to the people.
The offerings are designed to save consumers about $2 to upwards of $5 a month, depending on the package chosen. For example, if a family subscribes today to all of Apple’s major services plus the highest iCloud storage tier, that would cost about $45 a month. A new bundle could knock more than $5 off that.
MacDailyNews Take: This is a great idea, obviously:
We’d really like to see a way to pay for all of the Apple services we choose for one price. Give us a bunch of tick boxes and let us choose our combination of iCloud storage, Apple Music, iTunes Match, etc. and let us pay a single price for all of our choices. — MacDailyNews, October 17, 2016
Apple could make a more compelling “Prime” bundle than even Amazon can offer. If Apple rolled some meaningful iCloud storage deal into it, it’d be tough to resist for many, many people! – MacDailyNews, June 8, 2020