iCloud+ bundle includes Apple TV & Arcade

There is, however, an important change in the way both services will be sold here. Apple TV and Apple Arcade will no longer be available as standalone subscriptions in the Singapore market. Existing individual subscriptions will be cancelled and moved to iCloud+ automatically. Fret not, however, as viewing histories, game progress and Apple Arcade saves will be preserved.

Another key change is the all-services-in-one subscription, Apple One, will also no longer be available for new subscribers in Singapore. However, those who already have an Apple One subscription can continue using it.

What now for existing Apple One subscribers?

While this is great news overall, especially for those already on an iCloud+ plan, it does raise the question of whether it still makes sense for existing Apple One customers to stay on it. The S$23.95 Individual plan currently combines 50GB of iCloud+ storage, Apple TV, Apple Arcade and Apple Music. Once Apple TV and Arcade are included with iCloud+, subscribing separately to the S$1.48 iCloud+ plan and the S$11.98 Apple Music Individual plan would cost S$13.46 per month instead. That is S$10.49 less than Apple One, while providing broadly the same collection of services.

Apple Music itself is not being folded into the new iCloud+ bundle and will remain available as a separate paid subscription. That is perhaps unsurprising, considering it is one of Apple’s more established subscription services and grew out of the company’s long-running iTunes music business. iCloud+ users will instead receive Apple Music Select, a smaller collection of ad-free, Apple-programmed stations covering regional music, current hits and selections from the 1980s and 1990s. This should not be confused with a full Apple Music subscription, which provides on-demand access to its complete music catalogue.

Why is Apple doing this?

Apple has not explained why it is restructuring its subscriptions this way in Singapore and the other participating markets, but I suspect the reason is to make iCloud+ the main entry point into its services ecosystem. Cloud storage is one of the easier subscriptions to retain because Apple users rely on it for device backups, photos and files. Adding TV programmes and games give this service added value.

It may also help Apple place its shows and games in front of a much larger audience. Someone paying S$1.48 mainly to back up an iPhone may not previously have considered subscribing to Apple TV or Arcade, but both effectively become free additions now. Even if only a portion of those users watch Ted Lasso or download a game, Apple gains considerably more exposure for the content it has spent years building.

The caveat here, of course, is that Apple users will have fewer ways to subscribe to what they want and don’t want. Anyone interested only in Apple TV or Apple Arcade must now take up an iCloud+ plan. But when the cheapest iCloud+ plan costs far less than either service did individually, I don’t think anyone is likely to complain about the math.

For more information about the new iCloud+ subscription plans or to subscribe, click here.