When in doubt, offer your services in a bundle.
Apple is reportedly readying a launch of bundled services, with the working brand name “Apple One,” this October. The bundle would offer a selection of Apple’s services at a discount, and include a variety of packages and pricing. Word around the camp fire is that this is Apple’s means of contending with rival services such as Peloton, as Apple virtual fitness classes are said to be part of the bundle deal.
The bundle would arrive alongside the new iPhone 12 lineup, as Apple continues to grow its services revenue. On its latest earnings call, Apple publicly confirmed that the new iPhone series would debut a few weeks later than the usual September timeframe.
Rumore of Apple’s bundle plans have been circulating since references to bundled subscription packages were found in iOS 13.5 beta code that went out to developers.
The mighty Mark Gurman at Bloomberg has indicated that Apple will offer a sliding scale of bundle deals, with monthly savings in the $5 range. As such, a basic package could combine Apple Music and Apple TV+, a higher end package would also feature Apple Arcade, Apple News+ and iCloud storage.
The bundles will help to drive new users and subscriptions to Apple’s content services, such as Apple TV+, Apple News+, and Apple Arcade. Apple has also been said to be negotiating with music labels to help incorporate Apple Music into a future bundle.
An Apple services bundle will help it drive subscriptions for its own content offerings, rather than being so dependent on the third-party commissions.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.