'This is the easiest money I spend every month,' says one subscriber

Apple Music subscribers are going to need to dig a little deeper into their wallets. The Californian tech firm has hiked the prices of its streaming service globally — a first since October 2022.

"As a result of rising licensing costs, Apple Music is increasing its subscription price beginning today," the company said in a statement.

Licensing costs are what grant the right to use an artist or record label's work publicly, and in return, the licensee receives payment via a flat fee and royalties based on an agreed contract.

Apple Music UK Price Changes

Student Plan

The individual plan now costs £11.99 in the UK, up from £10.99. That's a straightforward £1 increase.

The family plan, which covers up to six people in one household, has jumped by £3 to £19.99 monthly.

There's a silver lining for students, though. Yes, the student plan has gone up by a dollar to $6.99 a month, but it now comes bundled with free access to Apple TV+ — a streaming service that would normally set you back $12.99 monthly on its own.

It's worth noting that Apple isn't alone here. Streaming services across the board have been putting prices up over the past couple of years, with both Spotify and Amazon Music hiking their fees on multiple occasions.

The price rise also happens to come after the tech giant poked fun at Spotify during their announcement of an increase earlier this year.

Even with the increase, Apple Music still undercuts its biggest rival. Spotify Premium recently went up to £12.99 a month, meaning Apple's individual plan comes in a full pound cheaper.

That said, Spotify's premium tier does throw in 15 hours of audiobooks each month, which Apple doesn't match.

Despite the price increase, subscribers don't seem to mind. One Reddit user wrote: "This is the easiest money I spend every month. It’s a steal for the value. All we can hope is that it never becomes as fragmented as video streaming has gotten."

Another wrote: "Strongly agree! I can access a huge library of music at any time, anywhere. If I’m interested in something, I don’t have to shell out to buy the CD (much less track it down, go to a store, or wait for it to arrive)."

Comment
by u/ioweej from discussion
in AppleMusic

The broader picture is that major record labels have been pushing streaming platforms to charge more for years. Their argument? Access to over a hundred million songs for roughly the price of a single CD still represents an undervalued product, especially once you factor in inflation.

For existing subscribers, the new pricing kicks in once their current billing cycle ends.