Apple could soon cut the price of its Apple Music streaming service by as much as 20% according to a new report.
The Digital Music News report cites “a pair of sources working closely with the streaming service” as saying the company is considering the price drop which could see the individual membership decrease from £9.99/$9.99 to £7.99/$7.99.
It would also mean the family membership, currently £14.99/$14.99, would drop to £12.99/$12.99, but the student deal, which allows students to sign up for £4.99/$4.99, will remain as it is.
It should be said that the report refers only to US pricing, so it’s unclear whether the price cut would be introduced in other countries.
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Apple is said to be ‘seriously discussing’ the move, but no decisions have apparently been reached at this point, according to the sources.
What’s more, if the changes go ahead, the company could introduce the price drop in time for Christmas, starting with a ‘holiday promotional discount’.
This promotion would mean the current ‘three months free’ offer would see customers who sign up before the festive season getting the reduced rates by March or April.
The sources also revealed that customers currently on the existing plans would not be paid any compensation for previous months, but would be transitioned to the new, lower rates if the discount becomes permanent.
If the report is accurate, Apple seems to be trying to compete with Amazon, which recently launched its own music streaming service, allowing its Prime customers to sign up for $7.99, while regular customers have to pay $9.99.
Prime customers also have access to a less comprehensive music library for free as part of their Prime subscription.
Of course, Digital Music News’ report remains unconfirmed for the time being, so take the news with a pinch of salt. We’ll have more in the near future, so stay tuned.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
