Apple bundles cut-down Apple Music with iCloud+ in 100+ countries
Apple will give iCloud+ subscribers in more than 100 countries a limited version of Apple Music at no extra charge. The tier is called Apple Music Select. The plan was detailed by Apple and reported by Billboard.
iCloud+ is Apple's paid storage subscription for people who use iPhones and other Apple devices. It starts at about $1 per month. Select is included in that price, so there is no added fee to switch it on.
Select is not the full Apple Music service. It offers a small set of playlists picked by Apple Music editors, the in-house staff who assemble playlists for listeners. The line-up includes stations programmed for specific regions. It also includes playlists organised by genre and era.
Apple describes Select as a lean-back audio experience with no ads. Lean-back simply means you press play on a playlist or station. You do not choose every track yourself, and no commercials interrupt the listening.
Apple said the offer is an effort to add paying Apple Music subscribers in emerging markets. These are countries where fewer people currently pay for a streaming subscription. The company will roll out Select to more than 100 countries and regions, including India, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates, according to Billboard.
That list spans parts of Asia, Africa and the Middle East, alongside other regions. The focus is on places where a full-price music plan can be a harder sell. A lower entry point inside an existing storage subscription changes that calculation.
The same iCloud+ subscription will also open up Apple Arcade and Apple TV. Arcade is Apple's games subscription. Apple TV is its video service, giving subscribers screen entertainment alongside music and storage.
Listeners who want more can move up to full Apple Music. iCloud+ subscribers will be offered that upgrade at a lower monthly price. The exact price will vary by location, with no single global figure.
What makes this stand out is the bundle itself. Instead of asking people to take out a separate music subscription, Apple is placing a lighter, ad-free option inside something they may already pay for. The emphasis is on curation over choice.
For listeners, this means a low-cost way to hear programmed music without adverts. Those who want full on-demand choice can pay more for the complete Apple Music service. The cost of that step up will depend on where they live.
