It’s a general trend in the streaming space: almost all television platforms are increasing their prices. The last company to announce an increase in this regard was Apple, which announced this Wednesday the increase in the cost of some of its services, including Apple TV+. The cost of the television platform increased from 6.99 euros to 9.99 euros per month, an increase of 43%. If you compare it with the price of 4.99 euros before October 2022, that means the tariff has doubled in just over a year.
Apple TV+ isn’t the only business service to see its price rise significantly. Apple Arcade has increased from 4.99 euros per month to 6.99 euros. Apple One, the subscription package that includes Apple TV+, Apple Music, Apple Arcade and other benefits, has also increased in price: the individual option increases from 16.95 euros per month to 19.95 euros per month; the family increases from 22.95 euros per month to 25.95; and the premium version costs from 31.95 euros per month to 34.95 euros. Apple Music is not affected by the increases for the time being and the price remains 10.99 euros per month. The new tariffs also affect Spain and are now in force.
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This increase coincides with the debuts of two of the company’s biggest bets as a production company. On October 20th, “The Assassins of the Moon”, Martin Scorsese’s new film, was released in cinemas, which will be shown on the platform after its theatrical release at a date not yet confirmed (between the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024). You can also watch Ridley Scott’s new film Napoleon on Apple TV+, premiering in theaters on November 24th and hitting the platform weeks later. The first cost around 250 million euros and the second almost 130 million.
Both represent the Apple company’s strong commitment to cinema, which has so far premiered all of its original films first on its platform. Scorsese began writing the screenplay for The Moon Killers alongside Erich Roth in 2017 when Paramount agreed to finance and distribute the film. However, as costs skyrocketed, the studio brought in Apple to subsidize the project. Other platforms were interested, but for Scorsese a long theatrical run was essential, which the company founded by Steve Jobs guaranteed.
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Something similar happened with “Napoleon,” which was co-produced with Sony Pictures. Another expensive film also financed by Apple is Argylle, which will be released in February next year. The film, directed by Matthew Vaughn (Kingsman), has a star-studded cast including Henry Cavill, Dua Lipa, Samuel L. Jackson and Bryce Dallas Howard. He is also preparing an as-yet-untitled film starring Brad Pitt and Javier Bardem. Further evidence of Apple’s strategy of promoting its catalog through films with exorbitant budgets.
These titles will be included in the catalog of a service consisting exclusively of original productions, both series and films. Since its inception, Apple TV+ has decided not to offer third-party productions, as is the case with the other platforms, but to rely exclusively on its own titles, making the service more exclusive but also more limited in its offerings. His series include hits such as Ted Lasso, The Morning Show and For All Mankind.
After years of platforms maintaining low prices and offerings to build a strong subscriber base, the new phase of streaming and Wall Street’s demands to become profitable companies have led them to look for new strategies to become profitable be. One of the measures they took was to increase prices for their customers. Apple is joining the general price increases in streaming that have taken place in recent months. Netflix, for example, recently announced the increase of its prices in some countries (Spain is not yet one of them), where the basic plan increases from 7.99 euros to 10.99 euros and the premium from 17.99 euros to 19.99 euros. Disney+, in turn, will use the launch of its ad-supported plan on November 1 to increase the rates of its ad-free versions. While the version with advertising costs 5.99 euros per month, the standard version without advertising costs 8.99 euros per month and the premium version costs 11.99 euros per month. Previously there was only one subscription option for 8.99 euros per month. Existing customers who do not change their tariff pay 11.99 euros, so they have to request a switch to the standard version if they no longer want to pay. HBO Max also increased its prices from 8.99 euros per month to 9.99 euros in July.
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