Apple Offers Discount On Apple Arcade, But There's A Catch

The Cupertino tech juggernaut this week launched a new annual subscription alternative in Apple Arcade, the company's video game streaming service. The latest offering includes unlimited access to an extensive and growing library of premium mobile games, but you have to subscribe for 12 months to avail of the discounted price.

The new annual subscription of Apple Arcade costs $49.99, which saves subscribers around $10 if they opt to subscribe to the video game streaming service every month. To access the new subscription offer, simply go to the Account tab in the iOS App Store, tap in the upper right-hand corner, and tap Subscriptions.

Following its official unveiling last March, Apple Arcade was released in September with more or less 100 titles, and more games being added in its library each month. So far, the Cupertino tech giant's game streaming service has received positive reviews partially due to the ads, the in-app purchase model, and the low subscription cost of $5 every month. These strategies further reinforce Apple's already strong value proposition.

It took the Cupertino tech giant almost a couple of years before it introduced a yearly subscription for Apple Music, which was initially launched in June 2015. The service discount the Apple Arcade offers aright now is similar to that of Apple Music that costs $99 for compared to the monthly subscription of $10. Apple Music service is fundamentally more complicated since the company must contend with record labels that have licensing rights.

In the case of Apple Arcade, the company is assisting in the funding of some of the game developments and has far greater control over the terms of service. Apple TV+, which is the video streaming service of the Cupertino tech giant, was launched last month and also included a yearly subscription at the same price point as Apple Arcade, which is $50 a year. At present, Apple is giving away a free year of Apple TV+ subscription with hardware purchases.

Apple is getting more aggressive in offering its services, such as the Apple Arcade, Apple Music, and Apple TV+. Reports claim that this is the company's strategy to compensate for the drop in iPhone sales for this year.