Apple will offer streaming service Apple TV+ for free during the first weekend of January in a global promotion.
The streaming service will be free January 3 to 5 on any device where Apple TV+ is available, to anyone with an Apple ID. The service normally costs $9.99 a month on a stand-alone basis, and Apple also bundles it in with music, video games, cloud storage and other services.
The free weekend coincides with the recent arrivals of fresh seasons of Bad Sisters and Shrinking, whose final episodes appeared earlier this month. Sci-fi series Silo’s current season will be ongoing at the time of the promotion, and a key upcoming title that will likely be plugged during the free weekend is Severance, whose second season is due on January 17.
The move is reminiscent of free weekends offered by premium cable networks during the heyday of cable TV. Other subscription streaming outlets, including Netflix, have also mounted similar free campaigns in more recent times.
Apple TV+ launched in November 2019. Apple has never disclosed its subscriber numbers, preferring instead to report metrics for its entire services division. In the most recent fiscal year, services revenue represented about one-quarter of the overall total, but it has been growing steadily. The company hit $25 billion in services revenue for the first time in the quarter ending September 30, with gross margins of 74%, far higher than the overall profit margin of 46%.
In addition to feeding its broader services business, Apple TV+ also is a driver of viewing on Apple TV, the company’s longtime hub for streaming. Even without an Apple TV+ subscription, viewers can engage with rental, sell-through or subscription offerings on Apple TV. The company also has offered select sports programming in front of the pay wall on Apple TV as it has invested in those live rights.
