Earlier this year, Apple acquired digital magazine subscription service Texture and confirmed that it will be integrated into Apple News. And in April, it was reported that Apple plans to offer a Texture-based subscription news service with unlimited access to select newspapers and magazines for a monthly price.
Now, Bloomberg News reports that the Apple News subscription service could be introduced as early as spring 2019. As we heard back in September, Apple is said to have held talks with major newspapers such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post about joining the service.
Texture offers unlimited access to around 200 digital magazines for $9.99 per month in the United States, including People, Vogue, Rolling Stone, National Geographic, GQ, Sports Illustrated, Wired, Maxim, Men's Health, GQ, Bloomberg Businessweek, ESPN The Magazine, and Entertainment Weekly.
Apple's subscription news service is expected to be a "premium product," but the report claims that some publishing industry executives fear the service could steal some of their subscribers, especially if it is affordably priced. Apple's services chief Eddy Cue has reportedly met with some publishers to alleviate these concerns.
On the other hand, Apple News could be a lifeline for the industry. A subscription service would instantly reach hundreds of millions of iPhones and iPads, providing publications with exposure that would be very hard to achieve on their own.
2019 is shaping up to be the year of Apple subscription services. Apple is widely rumored to introduce a Netflix-like streaming video service next year, with over a dozen TV shows and movies already lined up with stars such as Oprah Winfrey, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carell — although this one might be free.
Apple has held a special event in March in three of the past four years, so perhaps we'll hear more about these services in around three months from now.
