Apple Music Ends Voice Plan, mirroring Streaming Price Hikes

Apple Music Ends Voice Plan, mirroring Streaming Price Hikes

ByAudInsights.blog

Apple Music Ends Voice Plan

Apple Music subscribers can no longer sign up for the Voice Plan and existing subscribers’ auto-renew will turn off at the end of the billing period, Apple said in a blog post on Wednesday. Subscribers paid just $4.99 for Apple Music’s Voice Plan which launched in 2021 and allowed users to access their music library through Siri on all devices.

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Streaming Price Hikes

Apple’s shift away from providing a cheaper streaming option mirrors changes at other streaming providers including YouTube and Netflix, who have increased their subscription prices in recent months. Price hikes and low-priced subscription tier eliminations are making it harder for everyday users to afford streaming services. Just last week, Netflix raised the cost of its basic plan with ads from $10 to $12 and its premium plan from $20 to $23, making it the second price hike since January 2022.

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The Rise of Streamflation

Some have dubbed the price hikes “streamflation,” as other streaming platforms including Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max, Peacock, and Disney+ have all raised their prices in the past year. According to a Wall Street Journal analysis, the average monthly price of a major streaming service increased by nearly 25% from August 2022 to August of this year.

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Source: Apple Music’s Cheap Voice Plan Disappearing Is Another Example of ‘Streamflation’

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