Apple Again Rumored to Announce New Podcast Subscription Service At ‘Spring Loaded’ Event Later Today
We're just hours away from Apple's first event of the year, and alongside widely reported updates to the iPad Pro and possibly the reveal of other new products, Apple will announce a new paid podcast subscription service, according to The Wall Street Journal.
According to the Journal, this new service will be built into the Apple Podcasts app and will "allow listeners to compensate hosts directly." Yesterday, Vox's Peter Kafka tweeted that he is "pretty sure Apple is prepping its own podcast plan - a paid subscription service - on Tuesday."
Neither Kafka nor today's new report offers any new concrete insight into the pricing of this new service and its specific breakdown. While it may come as a surprise, news of an Apple podcast subscription service is not entirely new. Bloomberg and The Information have both independently reported that Apple is in talks with production companies to produce new original shows for the service.
Even without the new service, Apple has launched several original podcast shows based on content from Apple TV+, such as "The Line." Further corroborating rumors of a paid service, changes found within the Podcasts app on iOS 14.5 by MacRumors contributor Steve Moser indicate that Apple is reworking the app with more subscription-centric features.
Apple's "Spring Loaded" event will officially kick off at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time via a live stream on Apple's website and YouTube channel. If you're unable to watch the live stream, you can follow along for full coverage of all of the announcements from the event on MacRumors.Com or follow us on Twitter at MacRumorsLive for our live tweet coverage.
Popular Stories
Apple is not expected to release a standard iPhone 18 model this year, according to a growing number of reports that suggest the company is planning a significant change to its long-standing annual iPhone launch cycle.
Despite the immense success of the iPhone 17 in 2025, the iPhone 18 is not expected to arrive until the spring of 2027, leaving the iPhone 17 in the lineup as the latest...
Language learning app Duolingo has apparently been using the iPhone's Live Activity feature to display ads on the Lock Screen and the Dynamic Island, which violates Apple's design guidelines.
According to multiple reports on Reddit, the Duolingo app has been displaying an ad for a "Super offer," which is Duolingo's paid subscription option.
Apple's guidelines for Live Activity state that...
The company behind the BlackBerry-like Clicks Keyboard accessory for the iPhone today unveiled a new Android 16 smartphone called the Clicks Communicator.
The purpose-built device is designed to be used as a second phone alongside your iPhone, with the intended focus being communication over content consumption. It runs a custom Android launcher that offers a curated selection of messaging...
Apple plans to introduce a 12.9-inch MacBook in spring 2026, according to TrendForce.
In a press release this week, the Taiwanese research firm said this MacBook will be aimed at the entry-level to mid-range market, with "competitive pricing."
TrendForce did not share any further details about this MacBook, but the information that it shared lines up with several rumors about a more...
Apple is planning to release a low-cost MacBook in 2026, which will apparently compete with more affordable Chromebooks and Windows PCs. Apple's most affordable Mac right now is the $999 MacBook Air, and the upcoming low-cost MacBook is expected to be cheaper. Here's what we know about the low-cost MacBook so far.
Size
Rumors suggest the low-cost MacBook will have a display that's around 13 ...
Apple today announced a number of updates to Apple Fitness+ and activity with the Apple Watch.
The key announcements include:
New Year limited-edition award: Users can win the award by closing all three Activity Rings for seven days in a row in January.
"Quit Quitting" Strava challenge: Available in Strava throughout January, users who log 12 workouts anytime in the month will win an ...
Apple hasn't updated the Mac Pro since 2023, and according to recent rumors, there's no update coming in the near future. In fact, Apple might be finished with the Mac Pro.
Bloomberg recently said that the Mac Pro is "on the back burner" and has been "largely written off" by Apple. Apple apparently views the more compact Mac Studio as the ideal high-end pro-level desktop, and it has almost...
