Apple Services Revenue Drops Slightly to $19.2B As Total Subscriptions Top 900M
Written by djfrosty on October 28, 2022
Apple services, the category which encompasses Apple TV+ and Apple Music, saw another slight drop in revenue during the fourth fiscal quarter ending in September.
The category generated $19.2 billion in revenue, down slightly from the $19.6 billion reported during the third fiscal quarter ending in June — a figure that was another decline compared to the record $19.8 billion in sales the services collectively generated during the second quarter. But compared to the previous year, Apple’s FY Q4 services revenue represented a five percent year-over-year increase.
Apple now has more than 900 million paid subscriptions, up from the 860 million reported during Q3, according to Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Accounting for the tech giant’s product sales, Apple brought in $90.1 billion during the quarter — a quarterly record for the company driven by continued iPhone sales. “Our record September quarter results continue to demonstrate our ability to execute effectively in spite of a challenging and volatile macroeconomic backdrop,” Apple CFO Luca Maestri said in announcing the results.
The company’s earnings report comes just days after Apple instituted price hikes across Apple TV+, Apple Music and the Apple One subscription bundle. Apple TV+ — home to Ted Lasso and Severance — now costs $6.99 per month, compared to the $4.99 per month price point the service has maintained since its 2019 launch, while the annual plan for Apple TV+ now costs $69, compared to $49.
Speaking with analysts on the company’s earnings call, Cook said the increased price for Apple TV+ was a reflection of the increase in content available on the streamer. “We’re very focused on originals only, and so we had four or five shows or so in the beginning and priced it quite low,” he said. “We now have a lot more content and are coming out with more each and every month, and so we we increase the price to represent the value of the service.”
Apple Music subscriptions now start at $10.99, making it more expensive than Spotify, while the family plan costs $16.99 per month and the annual plan costs $109.
Apple also quietly updated its App Store rules to require iOS publishers to give the company a 30 percent cut for any boosted, or sponsored, posts purchased within their respective apps. The move has frustrated platforms like Meta, which sells sponsored posts.
This article was originally posted on THR.com.