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Rumor: Apple is planning a gaming subscription service

Apple is planning a subscription service for games, according to Cheddar, quoting five unnamed “people familiar with the matter.”

The service would purportedly function like Netflix for games, allowing users who pay a subscription fee to access a bundled list of titles. Apple began privately discussing a subscription service with game developers in the second half of 2018, according to Cheddar.

No word on pricing, What’s more, the article says the tech giant has also discussed partnering with developers as a publisher, “which could signal Apple’s ambition to assume distribution, marketing, and other related costs for select games.”



Chances the rumor is true, according to the Sellers Research Group (that’s me): 90%. It makes sense considering Apple’s intensified focus on Services revenue and the fact that billions of dollars are spend on Apple’s online stores for games and in-app purchases.

The question is: will the subscription service, should it arrive, be targeted just to iPhone and iPad users? Or will Apple let the Mac and the Apple TV in on the action as well?

Dennis Sellers
the authorDennis Sellers
Dennis Sellers is the editor/publisher of Apple World Today. He’s been an “Apple journalist” since 1995 (starting with the first big Apple news site, MacCentral). He loves to read, run, play sports, and watch movies.