Apple Backs Down on $7.99 Price Point for New Music Service After Meeting Resistance From Record Labels
Amid all of the excitement over the 12-inch MacBook and new pricing details on the Apple Watch, Billboard has shared some new information on Apple's rumored music service.
Initial rumors suggested Apple was hoping to undercut competing services like Spotify on price, offering its upcoming music service for $7.99, but according to Billboard, music labels are said to be highly resistant to pricing under the industry standard of $9.99.

Due to labels' insistence on the $9.99 price point, Apple is said to have backed down from its aggressive $7.99 pricing goal, suggesting the service may cost subscribers $9.99 per month instead of $7.99 per month.
Negotiations for Apple's upcoming subscription service are evidence labels are standing firm on pricing. Industry sources say Apple has backed down from its effort to lower monthly pricing for its subscription service to $7.99 from $9.99. Apple would have to absorb the loss if it sets a price lower than the standard $9.99.
Apple may not be able to offer a lower price point than competing services, but industry insiders that spoke to Billboard have suggested that Apple is talking to artists and labels about exclusives for key releases that will help it stand out from the competition.
Limited details are available on Apple's new subscription music service, but it's said to be a complete rebranding of the company's existing Beats Music service. It is rumored to be directly integrated into iTunes and it will be platform agnostic -- available on iOS and on Android, through a dedicated Android app Apple is building.
Recent rumors have suggested that Apple will launch its revamped streaming music service in June, during the company's annual Worldwide Developers Conference.
Popular Stories
With around four months to go before Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 14 lineup, the overwhelming majority of rumors related to the new devices so far have focused on the iPhone 14 Pro, rather than the standard iPhone 14 – leading to questions about how different the iPhone 14 will actually be from its predecessor, the iPhone 13.
The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are expected...
The iPhone 14 will feature a more expensive "high-end" front-facing camera with autofocus, partly made in South Korea for the first time, ET News reports.
Apple reportedly ousted a Chinese candidate to choose LG Innotek, a South Korean company, to supply the iPhone 14's front-facing camera alongside Japan's Sharp. The company is said to have originally planned to switch to LG for the iPhone...
Last year's iPhone 13 Pro models were the first of Apple's smartphones to come with 120Hz ProMotion displays, and while the two iPhone 14 Pro models will continue to feature the technology, their screens could well boast expanded refresh rate variability this time round.
To bring ProMotion displays to the iPhone 13 Pro models, Apple adopted LTPO panel technology with variable refresh...
Apple has silently increased the price of its Apple Music subscription for college students in several countries, with the company emailing students informing them their subscription would be slightly increasing in price moving forward. The price change is not widespread and, based on MacRumors' findings, will impact Apple Music student subscribers in but not limited to Australia, the...
Apple is one of several companies that have held talks with Electronic Arts (EA) about a potential purchase, according to a new report from Puck.
EA has spoken to several "potential suitors," including Apple, Amazon, and Disney as it looks for a merger arrangement. Apple and the other companies declined to comment, and the status of the talks is not known at this time, but Apple does have an ...
Sony this week came out with an updated version of its popular over-ear noise canceling headphones, so we picked up a pair to compare them to the AirPods Max to see which headphones are better and whether it's worth buying the $400 WH-1000XM5 from Sony over Apple's $549 AirPods Max.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. First of all, the AirPods Max win out when it comes ...
Top Rated Comments
Likewise, too bad the 7.99 price is the only reason I would consider switching.