Apple's new streaming service will be cheaper than expected


Apple is finally ready to enter the streaming wars, and its new service will cost about half as much as we thought.
The company during a Tuesday event officially announced the launch date of its new streaming service, Apple TV+. It will be available on Nov. 1, not long before Disney's new service Disney+, which launches on Nov. 12. Apple TV+ will also cost $4.99, making it cheaper than Disney+, which will cost $6.99. It'll also be cheaper than the most popular $12.99 Netflix plan, and the ad-supported $5.99 Hulu plan.
It had previously been reported that Apple was looking at a $9.99 price point for Apple TV+, which seemed high considering the service will be launching with a slimmer library of content compared to its competitors. CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday touted upcoming originals like The Morning Show, a drama starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Apple also announced that those who purchase a new iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV device will get a year of Apple TV+ for free. In this way, The Hollywood Reporter's Natalie Jarvey notes that Apple's "TV service essentially becomes an added bonus to keep people in the Apple device ecosystem."
The fight to take on Netflix will heat up significantly with the back-to-back launch of these two new streaming giants this November.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages