Those who have taken out a free annual Apple TV+ subscription will be able to use it for another six months without paying, 9To5Mac reports. Accordingly, a free Apple TV+ subscription will run until July 2021 in the future.
According to The Verge, the free subscription was extended because of production delays due to the corona pandemic. At launch over a year ago, there were a few series with a first season. Since then, only one series has had a second season released. Other series are still awaiting the release of a second season.
The first renewal of the free annual subscription to Apple TV+ took place at the beginning of October 2020. The subscription was actually supposed to expire on February 8, 2021, if the subscription was booked on the release date of Apple TV+. When the subscription was first renewed, this also applied to customers in Germany. It can therefore be assumed that the second extension also applies to subscriptions in Germany.
Announcement by e-mail can take time
In the settings of an active Apple TV+ subscription, the renewal is not yet displayed at Golem.de. After the first renewal was announced, it took more than two weeks before we as customers were informed by e-mail.
The Apple TV+ video streaming subscription was launched worldwide on November 1, 2019. Regularly, it costs 4.99 euros per month. Right at the start, Apple offered the option of being able to use the subscription for one year free of charge if a current Apple device was used. Those who had booked Apple TV+ at the start would originally have had to cancel the subscription at the end of October 2020 to prevent it from renewing and turning into a paid subscription. Those who cancel their free annual Apple TV+ subscription before then will no longer be able to use it, effective immediately.
Apple wants to give out credits
With the first renewal, the free subscription of Apple TV+ initially runs until January 31, 2021, but now it should be possible to use it until July 2021. 9To5Mac does not name a specific date. The date might also vary slightly from case to case. We had booked the free subscription on the day of release, but were granted usage until February 7, 2021 when we renewed for the first time.
Those who already pay for a subscription to Apple TV+ should receive a credit for the monthly subscription fees. Apple plans to notify subscription customers of this via email. Figures on how many subscribers pay for Apple TV+ and how many take advantage of the free annual subscription, Apple has not yet mentioned.
Apple TV+ catalog remains very small
Since the launch of Apple TV+, the catalog has grown, but the selection is still meager compared to the competition. According to the streaming search engine Justwatch, the Apple TV+ subscription, priced at €4.99 per month, currently includes 36 series and 14 movies, including only five feature films. Otherwise, there are two short films and a few documentaries. Among the series, only a few consist of more than one season.
By comparison, the Disney+ catalog currently includes 179 series and 895 movies for a monthly price of 7.99 euros. Prime Video has 886 series and 5,747 movies for a monthly price of 7.99 euros as part of a Prime subscription. Netflix’s catalog includes 1,625 series and 2,924 movies. A Netflix subscription is available from 7.99 euros per month, but then only in SD resolution. Those who want HD resolution recently have to pay 12.99 euros per month for Netflix. Access to content in 4K resolution costs 17.99 euros per month.
