Apple Inc announced a new subscription bundle of creative apps called Creator Studio, an attempt to give its photo- and video-editing software fresh momentum in the face of intensifying competition.
The bundle, announced Tuesday, includes Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro and Pixelmator Pro, among others, and will be available Jan 28 for US$12.99 (RM29.90 locally) per month or US$129 (RM299 locally) annually. Apple is also offering a one-month free trial.
Creator Studio is yet another offering in Apple’s growing list of subscription services as the company looks to generate more recurring revenue. Apple’s services business remained its fastest-growing segment in the company’s September quarter, with revenue rising 15% to US$28.8bil (RM116.78bil). The unit includes sales from the App Store, iCloud and Apple’s entertainment-based subscriptions, including Apple Music and Apple TV.
With the new program, college students and educators can get the subscription for a cheaper rate of US$2.99 (RM9.90 locally) monthly or US$29.99 (RM99 locally) per year.
Apple will continue to offer the programs on the Mac App Store as one-time software purchases. On the iPad, however, the Creator Studio package will become the only way to access Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro. Existing subscribers can maintain their old pricing for the individual apps, but new customers must buy into the bundle.
Apple notes that all software included in Creator Studio can be shared between as many as six family members – a level of flexibility that Adobe Inc doesn’t offer with software like Photoshop and Premiere.
Apple’s rivals in creative software have been building more advanced versions of their products for mobile devices. Adobe brought its popular Premiere video-editing program to smartphones last fall, starting with iPhones. Adobe itself was responding to pressure from upstarts such as ByteDance Ltd-owned CapCut and Edits from Meta Platforms Inc.’s Instagram unit.
To help in its own effort, Apple agreed in late 2024 to acquire Pixelmator, known for its photo-editing software for the Mac, iPhone and iPad. Another of that team’s apps, Photomator, is not part of the Creator Studio but will remain available as a standalone subscription for US$7.99 (RM32) monthly or US$29.99 (RM121) per year. – Bloomberg
