Apple TV+ Discontinues Free Trial in UK, South Africa; Will American Customers Lose it When Ad-Supported Tier Launches?
Apple representatives have a history of not saying much about their company to the public, even when big changes are afoot. That seems to be the case once again this week, as 9to5 Mac reports Apple TV+ has quietly discontinued its free trial offer for users in South Africa and the United Kingdom.
Other free trial offers, like a three-month free viewing window when you buy select Apple devices are still in effect. Customers will still be able to cancel their Apple TV+ subscription at any time, but they are now billed as soon as they’re signed up. The move will bring Apple TV+ closer in line with Apple’s other streaming platform MLS Season Pass, which has never offered a free trial since launching in February.
In the United States, the free trial remains in effect for now. But it’s fair for users to wonder if that will continue, as there was no announcement in the U.K. or South Africa that the trial was being discontinued before it happened. The lack of warning is reminiscent of Apple’s first price increase, which it executed last October without any kind of heads-up to the public.
It’s logical to assume the Apple TV+ free trial in the United States will eventually go as well, but when? It’s hard to say for sure, but one event to point to would be the launch of an ad-supported plan for Apple TV+. Rumors have been flying about an ad-supported tier of the service ever since Apple hired an executive to build the advertising component for Apple TV+.
If Apple keeps the free trial in place for American users until its ad-supported tier is ready to roll out, that would be the ideal time to discontinue it. It would have a lower-priced option to offer potential subscribers instead, and since ad-supported tiers generate more average revenue per user (ARPU), the company will be incentivized to drive as many new customers to that plan as possible once it’s on the market. It would be similar to Netflix eliminating its cheapest ad-free plan after seeing softer-than-expected sign-ups to its Standard with Ads plan.
Of course, there stands every chance that Apple will discontinue the free trial of Apple TV+ in the U.S. any time before it launches its plan with ads. The company is unpredictable and has a history of making such changes with essentially no advanced warning. If there is a delay, however, American users can circle the eventual launch date of Apple TV+’s ad-supported plan as the day the free trial might disappear.
Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is a subscription video streaming service for $9.99 a month that includes high-quality original shows and movies including Best Picture winner “CODA,” popular sitcom “Ted Lasso,” and dramas like “The Morning Show” and “Severance.” Apple TV+ is also home to MLB baseball games on Friday nights and MLS Season Pass.